


Swords and Sorcerers

by Poisondog2



Category: Zootopia (2016)
Genre: Add more tags as the story progresses, Alternate Universe - Pirate, Drinking, F/M, Flirting, Inspired by Zootopia (2016), M/M, Magic, Magic training, Mild Cursing, Minor Character Death, Not all is as it seems, Sharing a Bed, hopefully compelling lore, hopefully cool surprises, minor references to Harry Potter, not beta read i will die with my mistakes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-09
Updated: 2018-10-21
Packaged: 2019-05-20 04:19:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 46,631
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14887494
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Poisondog2/pseuds/Poisondog2
Summary: A pirate fox and his first mate rabbit set sail and explore the world... but is that there is to it? They quickly became good friends, but something seemed off... there was something... missing. What did the two know about their pasts, well... they would come to find to they are much more than Captain and First Mate, and what they discover changes everything as new enemies arise from the dark that they didn't even even know they had. Will they be able to overcome this?You'll just have to find out...





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Hey Peoples! So I've been writing for a few years now, but this is the first story I will have ever actually posted. I hope whoever reads this, if anyone, enjoy it because I have no clue what I'm doing! Feedback is appreciated and you spot any grammatical or spelling mistake let me know- i have terrible grammar and i type really fast sometimes- so I can fix it later. So I guess without further ado let's get right into it- The first chapter of Swords and Sorcerers!

The year was 1660.

The day was like any other: clear blue skies, a light breeze, and trees stretching for what seemed like forever. In this forest there was a lone wattle and daub house that wasn't too big, but it was big enough for a family to live in. And that's who lived there.

Inside the home there lived a family of rabbits that we're more of a small army. The eldest of the rabbits were a stout brown furred male with hazel eyes, while the other was a grey-furred female with soft violet eyes. The chaotic household had the two adults bouncing from place to place trying to get things under control, as this is usually every day in-house, but the noise did seem to bother the other two- and quite frankly unusual- occupants of the home.

In the Study, behind closed doors, sat a male fox with deep russet fur, an athletic build, and piercing sapphire eyes. He was currently hunched over his desk- glasses on- as the sound of scraping wood filled the air. With each swift strike the tod whittled away at the thick branch in front of him until it began to form the desired shape. With a final stroke the fox slid his chair back and held the almost finished product in his hand, “perfect,” he declared before grabbing for a smaller, more precise, knife and started carving grooves. Every now and again he would look up and chuckle at the mayhem happening on the other side of the door before resuming his work. Hours went by before the double doors slid open to reveal another, this time female- fox with lighter, and more orange, red fur and shining emerald eyes, “John it's been forever you need to take a break.” The man groaned but didn't look up, “but honey-” “Don't ‘but honey’ me,” she frankly stated, “you've been cooped up in the Study the entire day! You need to stop, come out here, and eat. I'm guessing that you haven't had any food or water since you started?” The room filled with uncomfortable silence as the vixen approached, “I’ll take your silence as a no,” she came around and lowered the project onto the desk, “so you are going to get up, come with me, and we're going to have dinner with everyone and that's final.” “But-” “But nothing, end of discussion.” The male went to argue, but was silenced by the cold glare of the woman, “...y-yes dear..” “Perfect!” The female cheered as she resumed an upbeat attitude as she dragged her mate to the dining room… until a thought came to mind, “oh! I almost forgot,” the vixen shifted gears to the entrance of the house and cupped her paws around her muzzle, “KIDS! DINNER!” A few seconds went by before the sounds of shuffling bushes and giggles grew louder and louder as two kids burst forth and towards the house: a small grey doe with **amethyst** eyes and a small tod with **emerald** eyes.

The two didn't stop giggling until they sat down next to each other, the vixen warmly smiled, “you two were out there a long time, did you have fun?” “Yes,” the two eldest kids exclaimed, “well that's all I could ask for, now,” she clapped her paws together, “is everyone ready to eat?” “Yeah!” Came the chorus of children, which satisfied the woman, “excellent! Bonnie, Stu, would you mind helping pass around the food?” The two rabbits shook their heads, “it’ll be our pleasure Victoria,” said the older doe as she ushered her husband over the dishes.

Time went by as the cluster of foxes and rabbits ate their food with gusto as they engaged in many topics ranging from the chores that were completed to the happenings in town. John took his opportunity to speak with his child, “son?” He caught his attention instantly, “you know the staff I’ve been working on for you?” The young tod nodded with exuberance, “well… I reckon by the end of the night I’ll have it finished!” 

The tod’s eyes widened as he bounced in his seat, “yes, yes, yes!” The boy cheered as he pumped his fists into the air. Once he calmed down slightly he turned back to his father, “will I be able to use it tomorrow?” The elder male chuckled, “now-now champ there's no need to be in a rush; You know that you won’t be able to use it until you 18th birthday when you’ve fully developed.”

“Why?” he whined as he crossed his arms.

“Because that's just how it is son, I'm sorry. You still have a lot to learn before you’re able to wield it,” his father explained, “I had to wait, and so did my father and his father before… it's just how things work out kiddo.” 

This seem to reassure the boy, which brought on another thought, “if mine’s almost done what about Carrots’? Is her’s done?” “Yes son,I did her first because I knew that it would’ve easier since full grown rabbits are smaller than full grown foxes; It was much faster to proportion hers.” This seems to excite the small doe, “can’t I see it after dinner Uncle John?” The tod smiled, “maybe tomorrow when there's more light to see it in,” the rabbit nodded excitedly as she went back to polishing off her food- the fox following her example.

_____

Smoke. The smell of smoke. The smell of smoke is what filled the noses of the two eldest children. It had been many hours since dinner was done and the kids were put to bed, but the usually powerful smell rose the two kids from their slumber. The young doe’s nose twitched as she looked over at the other bed, “brother, what’s happening?”

The young tod shrugged his shoulders as he threw off the covers, “I’m not sure sister…” he whispered as he headed for the door, “it… it smells like fire, but mom and dad don't light the fireplace this late and neither do Aunt and Uncle.” The fox opened the door to our bedroom and sighed with relief when he didn't see smoke flooding the hallways, but the question of where the smoke- and inherently the fire- was. The young fox caught the hushed whispers of what he assumed were his parents, his aunt, and his uncle, so he took his sister’s arm and headed downstairs. The whispers grew louder.

“How do they know? We haven't told anyone!” Came the voice of Stu.

“There have been rumors floating around for ages, there were bound to be mammals that acted upon them,” Victoria voiced.

“It's been decades since either of our families were attacked, and we have the children now… what do we do?” Came the worried tone of Bonnie.

“We're going to have to disappear again… but I'm not sure if we’ll all make it out of this one,” came the somber tone of John.

The siblings were confused: who were their parents talking about? Why would they have to hide? What did they mean by not everyone making it? The turmoil in the young kids' heads had distracted them from how far they were sticking out from behind the door frame until the four adults spotted them, “kids!” SHouted a very surprised Bonnie, “what are you two doing up?” The tod shuffled his feet, “we smelled smoke,” he took a look out the window to see the amber glow of fire just outside, “and we were worried so we came down… what happening?” 

Such an innocent question, but it brought a look of dismay to grace the faces of the four adults. John crouched down, “nothing son just… we need to leave.” “What? Why?” “There are some bad people outside right now and want to hurt our family. We need you and your sister to go wake the rest of your siblings up and get them into the cellar, do you think you two can do that?” Without a second thought the two kids rushed all over the house and rouse all of their younger siblings and guided them into the cellar like John said.

_____  
While the kids were working Stu had gone to fetch something he thought he would never had to use again: two steel swords and jeweled amulets of different sizes. John and Stu had taken one of each when they heard shouting for the outside, “DEMONS! Come out of your disgraced home unarmed and we’ll promise a swift death!” 

The buck snorted as the jewel on his amulet began to glow, “if they think we won’t protect our family then they have another thing coming…” His grip on the sword tighten as he looked at his wife, fear spreading through her features. He softened, “Bonnie, I promise, we’ll be okay.” SHe looked at her husband, skepticism filling her eyes, “and if we're not?” “Then if me and John don’t return… you know what to do.” 

_____

Sounds were muffled as the eldest tod and doe huddled their siblings together, not fully knowing what was going on in the open air. Seconds turned to minutes and minutes turned to hours before the cellar doors swung open, having the kids huddle further together in fear, “kids?” Came to soft, but slightly strained, voice of Bonnie. They all did their best not to swarm the mother. After a few seconds hugging Bonnie pushed back to look at the small crowd, “I need the lot of you to go to Aunt Victoria, alright? She’ll watch over you now go!” The older doe bark causing the younger rabbits to shuffle down the hall rather quickly. The eldest were about to follow the rest of their siblings before Bonnie stopped them, “not you two, you’re coming with me.” “What? Why Mama?” She sighed, “I’ll explain in a moment, come on.”

Bright colors and the roar of flames faded into the background as Bonnie pulled the two kids along far away from the battle ensuing. Worry spread over the faces of the young tod and doe as they had no idea where they were going, but right before they could ask what was going on Bonnie had stopped, “okay… we're here.” “Where’s here Aunt Bonnie?” She looked down at the small fox, her heart breaking just a little more, “stand by that tree-” gestured to the large oak in front of them, “-with your sister and I’ll explain in a moment.” The fox and rabbit were still worried but they did as they were told. 

The kids stood, paw to paw, when a glowing circle of royal purple formed underneath them. In an instant pain riddled the minds of the two kids as they broke their grip on each other to hold their heads. Tears flooded their eyes as the pain grew more and more- the feeling of something being ripped out of them growing stronger. The doe struggled to stay on her feet, and when she collapsed she tried to look up at her mother: tears in her eyes as well and intricate circles of the same color on her palms, “m-mama…? W-What are you d-doing? It h-hurts!” At this point Bonnie couldn't hold her sobs back anymore, “I'm s-so s-s-sorry! I… I have to… to protect you.” The doe turned her attention away from her mother to her brother, reaching a paw out. The tod did the same, but even though they were right next to each other the pain that riddled their heads kept them from focusing, “C-Carrots…” was all the fox said before passing out. Her vision started to blacken as she heard her mother one last time, “r-remember… I love you two so much! This… t-this is the only way to protect you… try… try to find each other again…” was all she caught before the darkness engulfed her.

_____

_15 Years Later…_

_CRASH!_  
That was the sound of a chair bursting through a bar window. The culprit: a very irate rhino. The cause: a smug looking fox with **emerald** eyes. The rhino slammed into the table, “you cheated! There’s no way you beat me!” The fox was unapologetically scooped the many gold coins and jewels into a pouch as other mammals watched the scene unfold, “I can guarantee that I did not, in fact, cheat. High-Low Jack was one of the _many games_ my father taught me, so I can promise my father didn't teach me to cheat, he smirked, “he was an honest man.”

 _CRASH!_  
Another chair was thrown, “bullshit!” “Easy now, there's no need to use specist remarks-” “All you foxes know is how to cheat! I want my money back!” The rhino _towered_ over the 4 foot fox as he glared daggers at said mammal. The fox just shrugged, “you _could_ play me in another round to earn your gold back, but something tells me you’ll end up penniless before the day is out.” The fire in the rhino’s eyes flared, but before he could do anything there was a small _Thwip!_ Filling the air having a hoof shoot up to his neck. Confusion was written across his face as his eyes rolled to the back of his head and falling backwards. The red fox had a pleased look on his muzzle as the cloud of dust began to dissipate, “Fin! I'm so happy you’re here!” The one he was referring to was a small Fennec Fox with sand-colored fur and rust colored eyes.

He snorted, “you’re lucky I was comin’ to get you _Wilde_ ,” he spat out the fox’s last name like an insult, “I would’ve been perfectly fine with the big guy pummeling some sense into you…” His disproportionately deep voice confused the patrons of the bar.

Wilde laughed, “there was _no way_ you would’ve let him hurt me, I _am_ your Captain afterall.”

“Tsk, yeah yeah, just get your furry butt in gear and back to the ship. We have someone there that wants to join our crew.”

“Oh? And who might it be?”

“You’ll see,” muttered the fennec as they strolled down the streets and over to the docks.

Camele Isle wasn't a place where only the worst of the worst hanged, but it wasn't a posh island for vacationing. Thus, beggars, and- most important of all- pirates called this place home as they had no other place to go, so the island’s dock were in good condition. 

Both foxes walked down the docks until they came up upon a massive ship of simple but magnificent beauty with the words _The Jolly Arrow_ embroidered on its side. Near the docking port stood a rabbit- a doe to be precise- with ash-grey fur and _beautiful_ **amethyst** eyes, “I was wondering when the owner of this ship would show,” her voice was assertive and filled with determination, “am I to assume you captain this vessel?” 

Wilde adjusted his coat, “your assumption is right my fair lady,” he stuck out his dark furred paw, “Captain Nicholas Wilde, at your service!”

She stared at his gesture for a moment before giving it forth, “Judith Hopps, a pleasure to finally meet you Captain.” “So,” Nicholas let her paw go, “I hear from me compatriot here that you want to sail the seas aboard my ship, is that correct?” “Yes it is.” “Then let me ask you a question,” he held up one digit, “and I want your answer to be only one word: What is it that you want?” Judith was confused by the question until she let it sit with her, only then did it make sense to her.

He was testing her, and because of this she gave him the answer that was truthful but also what he wanted to hear, “adventure.”

The Captain grinned as he nodded, “well then… Judith Hopps, welcome aboard The Jolly Arrow.”


	2. 1- Who says miracles don't exist?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everybody! Thank you so much for checking out my story, I really appreciate it! I wasn't expecting people to actually enjoy this... so I'm glad those of you do (I hope). I'm thinking of posting on a bi-weekly basis and see how that feels for me, but for now I wanted to share This second chapter for you guys. So lets get into it, Chapter Two of Swords and Sorcerers!

The year was 1685.

In the town square of London mammals of all shapes and sizes strolled the streets as they went about their daily tasks of shopping, being with family, and waiting for the execution to begin. You know, the usual. And in the crowd of many… three figures lie as they watched the proceedings.

Chains rattle as the line of prisoners, of all shapes and sizes, slowly march their way to the end.

The end: I hanging structure with 6 slots. 

A grey wolf dressed dressed in a royal uniform unrolled a parchment and began reading “in order to affect a timely halt to deteriorating conditions and to ensure the common good, a state of emergency is declared for these territories by decree of Lord Hellford Cunnings, duly appointed representative of His Majesty, the king.”

Stomp, rattle, push… the prisoners march. The first set prepared for what is to be their final moments.

“By decree, according to martial law, the following statutes are temporarily amended: Right to assembly, suspended.”

The lever is pulled- SNAP!

“Right to habeas corpus, suspended.”

The next group is prepped. The lever is pulled- SNAP!

“Right to legal counsel, suspended.”

The next group is prepped. The lever is pulled- SNAP!

“Right to verdict by a jury of peers, Suspended.”

The next group is prepped. The lever is pulled- SNAP!

“By decree, all persons found guilty of piracy, or aiding a person convicted of piracy, or associating with a person convicted of piracy…”

Two rhinos in similar royal clothing carelessly tossed one body after another onto a cart in order to be wheel away.

“...shall be sentenced to hang by the neck until dead.”

The next group came trodding up the stairs to their doom… but there was something special about them. The first one up was a water buffalo powerfully built with a permanent scowl on his muzzle- he had red-amber eyes. The next up with was a tiny fennec fox with huge ears and rust colored eyes- they had to put him on a high pedestal to reach the rope and weight on his waist to make it effective. The next two up were a rabbit and fox with amethyst and emerald eyes respectively- the former had a stoic look while the latter had a smirk. The two were a lean grey wolf and a portly cheetah with grass green and chocolate brown eyes respectively- both seemed worried, but content. 

The bard spoke once more, “by orders from the King: Pirate Captain Nicholas Piberius Wilde and his crew are sentenced to hang until dead, and upon his death the ship known as The Jolly Arrow will be stripped and repurposed,” the accused mammals laughed at that last remark.

While being prepped the fennec held the pouch on his side- one filled with precious material- and began to sing, “The king and his men stole the queen from her bed and bound her in her Bones. The seas be ours and by the powers where we will, we'll roam,” his strangely deep tones rang throughout the square.

Both cheetah and buffalo chimed in, “yo ho, all hands, hoist the colors high!” Their baritone and high voice resonated well.

The rest joined in, “Heave ho, thieves and beggars, never shall we die. Yo, ho, haul together, hoist the Colors high!” Even the prisoners in line began to sing and chant, stomping their various feet in sync.

The bard seemed concerned as he walked over to another- this one a ram, “should we stop them?” The ram snorted, “let them, it does nothing to stop their fate. 

Through the singing the fox spoke, “alas! If this be me my final moment I would want to tell you all that it was one helluva journey! As pirates, we live on!” It seemed like slow motion as the lever was pulled and the mammals began to descend… until something metal caught the glare of the sun. It whistled as it cut through the air, and subsequently through the six’s ropes. As Wild continued to fall, without the coming tightening of the rope, he managed to catch a glimpse of the object as it was bedded in the wood: it looked like… a bat? He had no time to rationalize what that meant as he passed through the trap door and land on the ground underneath it.

_____

The crew was shocked and confused as to what just happened while more question were raised when loud pops emanated from above and a cloud of smoke began to blanket the area. The patrons watching began to cough and scream as they started scattering in every which way… which allowed bountiful cover for the three figures to duck underneath the execution stage, “you must be Captain Wilde I presume?” The fox nodded, “perfect it's a pleasure to meet you and your crew, though I wish it was under better circumstances.” The tallest figure took a glance above, “that smoke won’t last, so best be getting you out of these chains now,” they turned to the second smallest figure, “Sly you remember the spell I taught you? You know, for unlocking things?” The hooded figure nodded.

The mammal reached into his cloak and pulled out a stick- no bigger than 9 inches- with a decorated handle and ridges cutting into the length of it. He pointed the stick towards the chained mammals and formed a circular motion before coming straight down, “Alohomora!” Upon the spoken word the shackles around their wrists and ankles release their grip and fell to the ground. Everyone was stunned, but before anything could be said the tallest figure spoke once more, “great work Sly! Now let's get back to your ship, shall we?”

Without another word Wilde and his crew followed the mysterious three into the smoke and started sprinting towards the docks. The cheetah-disregarding his size- was able to keep up a good pace with the other mammals, but ultimately had to be carried by the buffalo as cheetahs sprint and don't continuously run for long periods. They all managed to make it through a few alleyways before guards spotted them, “there they are, after them!” The polar bear guard shouted as he and his party gave chase.

_____

Sly began flicking his stick in every which way causing boxes and whatnot in the allies to fall over and slow down the guards. It still wasn't enough, so the main mammal turned to the smallest, “Lucky we could use some firepower right about now!” “On it!” She female voice responded. The crew watched as the small mammal jumped and ricocheted off various items until she was high above. She raised her paw up high- with red markings forming on the back- before she pushed forward and a stream of fire left her palms, causing the guards to back away.

The first mammal cheered as the smallest met back up with everyone, landing on his shoulder, “nicely done Lucky! That should buy us time to lose them.” And that it did. They stopped after ten more minutes of running to see if the guards were right behind them… they weren't. He took this time to speak to the Captain, “so I’m guessing who I saved up there wasn't all of your crew, correct?”

“That's right,” Wilde answered, “the rest scattered before they could be arrested. They’ll all probably be waiting for a signal that I escaped.” “And do you?” He looked downtrodden, “I… hadn't thought that far ahead.” 

The hooded mammal snorted, “oh Wilde… always thinking in the moment… don't worry, I set something up that might be of use,” he proceeded to pull out what looked to be a block of some kind with a red dome on top. He pressed down on the dome and in the distance a loud boom could be heard, “that should be signal enough, so let's hope the rest of your crew understood it. Let's go!”

And the mammal was right: aboard the ship various animals in slightly ragged clothing fought with the guards aboard. A mammal- a pig- had spotted the approaching animals and held up high a Captain's hat and sword, ‘Captain! I believe these belong to you!” He shouted, tossing the items his way. 

_____

It was spectacular! The sound of metal clashing, the yells of royal guards going overboard, the light push of the waves against the ship… what a perfect setting this was. The crew of the Jolly Arrow managed to drive off the guards and cheered victorious. While Wilde was happily going around to his crew members Hopps pointed towards the docks, “more incoming!” Guards, almost 100 of them, began marching towards the ship, their saviours from before weren't dealing with that, “not if I have anything to say about it. Sly! Lucky! Get this boat moving!”

“You heard him men, we're settin’ sail!” Came the voice of the Captain, watching as his crew began to scramble to their stations. 

Even with everyone where they were supposed to be the rabbit seem skeptical, “even if we get the ship ready Captain there's not way well leave to port before getting captured again!”

“That's where we come in!” Shouted the tallest hooded figure, “trust me when I say we’ll get out of here, and you won’t even have to worry about them coming after you, after all,” he began pulling out a stick similar to the other’s, but longer and with a skeleton and serpent making up the handle, “they can't chase us if they don't remember they had you- Sly! Lucky! Now!” All the crew do was stare as pale green markings formed on “Sly” as wind burst from palms and filled the sails while “Lucky” had an intricate deep blue circle form under her and everyone felt as the waves began pulling the ship to and fro, and in that moment the Jolly Arrow sat faster than it ever had before!

As the shore seem to slowly fade into the distance the hooded mammal from before raised his stick towards the land and twisted, “Obliviate!” He shouted and the crew watched as the guard that were approaching the docks stopped and held their heads in pain. The ship moved further and further out of sight, but Wilde was _just barely,_ able to see the guards look around in confusion before dissipating.

__

__

The crew once again cheered victorious.

The three hooded figures celebrated with one another as Wilde had of his other crew mates take the wheel, “well done you three, you managed to keep us from Davy Jones’ Locker as well as get me back my ship. For this I thank you,” in one swift motion he, and the rest of his crew, drew his sword once more and aimed it at the mysterious mammals, “but one does wonder why three **Magicians** would save the life of one pirate and his crew, so I ask you this- and remember if I don’t get the answer I like… then this is going to be terrible for you: Who are you and why did you save us?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those you might've noticed the beginning of this chapter practically identical to the opening scene in Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End. I've always liked that scene and thought it worked for this moment, so yeah.
> 
> What'd you guys think? Sorry for leaving you all on a minor cliffhanger, but i just couldn't find any other way to end this chapter- i don't usually write like this so it is an experience and challenge! So if you're enjoying the story so far leave and kudos and comment if you please I would really appreciate it, and any mistakes you spot tell me and fix it right up!
> 
> And with that I'll see you guys June 23rd!


	3. 2- Hidden Pieces Emerge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The identities of the three mysterious mammals are revealed. We also get a little insight into the crew as well as Hopps... what could be going on in that little head of hers?...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I'm back with another chapter of Swords and Sorcerers! I think I really have a grasp over the story I want to tell, so I am glad to share it with you all! 
> 
> And to quell any doubts: I always finish my writings, so don't fear about that.
> 
> And like always: any spelling/grammatical mistakes I make, point them out, and I'll try to fix them... And without further ado let's get right into it!

“I’ll ask again: who are you and why did you save us? We’ll be out on the open sea soon so you best be giving me answers.” Captain Wilde, captain of The Jolly Arrow, stepped closer to the hood figures, “‘cause if you don't hurry you three might end of shark bait… So what’s it going to be?”

The three unknown held up their paws high, “listen we don't want any-wait,” the tallest cocked his head, “did… did you call us Magicians?”

“Aye, that I did.”

“And by Magicians… you mean spellcasters and not showmen, correct?”

Wilde sighed, “I mean that I watched as ‘Sly’ waved what I believe is a wand to unlock our cuffs, I saw as your small friend there belted fire from her paws, and I watched as those two control the wind and sea in order to get my ship out into the water… Magicians, Sorcerers, whatever you want to call yourselves, I mean the mammals that can use the Art of Magic.”

The biggest was dumbfounded, “so you… you know what… heh,” he placed his paws on the back of his head, “this world’s more interesting than I first thought… okay,” he wrapped his paw around the hood and revealed the mixed black, creme, and red fur of a Red Wolf- he had deep red eyes, “My name is Shadow and these are my associates Sly and Lucky.” Upon their introduction, they too removed their hoods to show a Red Fox with golden eyes and a grey rabbit with eyes of ruby. The wolf continued speaking, “and to answer your other question… let's just say that it wasn't in the cards for you and your crew to die today, so we did what we could to help you out and as you can see it paid off,” he lifted his paws up once more, “I promise you that's all we wanted, we don't have any ulterior motives or want any favors; We saved you because we wanted to.”

Wilde stared into the eyes of the red wolf to see if he could spot any falsehoods in his statements. Once he found what he was looking for he smirked, “you know… I have a knack to spot if someone is lying to me or not,” he placed his sword back in his sheath and signal his crew to do the same, “and your eyes have been nothing but truthful- Welcome aboard The Jolly Arrow!”

Shadow bowed ever so slightly, “we are humbled that you have allowed us to stay on your beautiful vessel.” “Stay as long as you like… that is if you _are staying…_ ” Shadow looked between Sly and Lucky before looking back at Wilde, “this was going to be a quick trip… but I think we’ll stick around for the time being.” 

“Excellent choice,” the Captain proclaimed as he gestured for them to come over, “well since you saved our lives why don't I introduce you to the ones you saved,” he padded off the other wolf, “this is Butch Wolfard, and he’s been with my crew for as long as I can remember, and trust me when I say that this has heart,” Wolford nodded as Wilde made his way around, “these two are Cornelius Bogo and Benjamin Clawhauser, they've been an asset to my crew because of their strength and intelligence,” Clawhauser started blushing from the compliment as Bogo just blew hot air out his nostrils, “this is little idiot is Finnick Deserttail and I’ve known this moron ever since I was a boy.”

Finnick growled, “you better watch it with the name callin’ _Captain…_ You might wind up without a face in the morning!” 

Wilde laughed it off as he walked over to the final mammal, “and this is my First Mate, Judith Hopps. She’s rough, tough, determined, and full of energy! My first Mate for only five years Judith has really shown me that she’s got what it takes.” Judith warmly smiled, “thank you, Captain, I really appreciate it.” ‘Anytime Hopps,” he slapped her on the back before gesturing to the rest of the crew on the ship, “and because of you three these mangy idiots still have a Captain to follow, and I commend you for that.” 

“Well, it's wonderful to meet you all and-” “Shadow?” Sly interrupted the red wolf, “yes Sly?” “Can I say something?” Shadow sighed as he placed a paw on his temple, “if it doesn't get us killed then yes you may speak.”

“Thank you,” Sly turned his attention to Bogo and Clawhauser- the latter gazing up with warmth in his features, “you two are together, aren't you?” He asked ever so innocently.

Through his yellow fur you could see Clawhauser’s face turn red as his eyes went wide, “w-w-what?? I-I don't… What gave you that-”

“I could tell from the way you were looking at buffalo butt there that you seemed pretty smitten with him. Just something I noticed is all,” he finished with a not-so-innocent shrug to his shoulders.

The buffalo’s eyes narrowed as he stomped over and picked the fox up by the collar, holding him inches from his snout, “do you have a problem with that?” Bogo strained through his teeth as if he was ready to blow.

The fox just wore a relaxed expression as his eyelids went halfway, “Nope! Just curious is all… It's kinda cute how defensive you’re being right now, Claws must _really like that_ about you…” Bogo snorted once more before not so gently dropping the fox, “you’re safe for now fox, but mark my words if I hear from anyone that you’re talking bad about Benjamin and me then I’ll make it my personal mission to see that you don't have legs to walk on…” “And I look forward to that day because if it does come down to that I gladly let you do it.”

Bogo huffed for one last time before stomping to do other work on the ship, Shadow facepalmed, “was that really necessary?”

“What? You said to not get _us_ killed, you didn't say anything about just _me_ ,” he stated with a smug look on his muzzle.

“Dumb Fox.”

“Vague Wolf.”

The red wolf sighed as he panned over to the Captain, “is there any other of those relationships on this ship that we should know about? I need a head’s up so I can keep Sly in check.”

“As there just so happens there are! See, on my ship, I don't discriminate because of your species or who you love, as long as you’re able-bodied then it doesn't matter to me. There are two others like Spots and Bogo: there is a male panther and cougar pair just amongst the crew and…” Wilde took the time to slowly gaze at Finnick, “well, me and Finnick.”

Of course upon hearing this Sly bounce his sight between the two foxes, “so you… and him… oh… _oh_ ,” he smiled, “this is _good_.”

“Sly-”

“So I’m curious-”

“Sly don't-”

“When it comes to romance-” 

“Sly I swear to whatever gods there are-”

“Who’s in charge, because I can't seem to imagine what that must be like for the fennec…”

The small fox’s eyes went wide with rage as he lunged that the other red fox only to be caught by the captain, “now-now Fin there’s no need to-” He didn't hear him.

“Just one bite, come on! You know he deserves it! Just let me have ONE crack at him!!!” The fennec struggled against the grip of Wilde until he finally gave up. Once Wilde believed that he wasn't going to lunge at Sly again he set him down, “ I apologize for his rash behavior, but he is quite sensitive about subjects like that,” a mischievous smirked form on the fox’s face, “ _but_ I can say that when we're alone that is one of the only times that, as captain, that I ‘relinquish control’ if you get what I mean.”

“Oh I get you, _loud and clear_ ,” the red foxes shared a laugh as the fennec turned to face his captain, “do you _want me_ to cut all the fur off of your tail? “‘Cause I’ll do it if you don't STOP LAUGHING!!!”

“Oh come now Finnick there's no need for that, we're just poking fun a bit no harm done.”

“Tsk, yeah whateva’,” muttered Finnick as went off to do his own thing.

Wilde wiped a tear from his eye, “he’ll calm down in a little bit in a few hours, so you should avoid him until then.”

“Duly noted.”

“Now, I’m off to see if the royal idiots messed with any of the stuff in my Captain’s Quarters so if you need me that's where I’ll be. Hopps you're in charge for the time being- try not to flirt with the guests.” 

“Oh I won’t,” she said as she walked past us, stopping to eye Lucky, “much,” she finished before walking off and leaving Lucky red and flustered.

_____

Night came soon enough and by the time the moon was overhead, there were only a few crew members still up and about. The calm crashing of waves against the ship’s hull was soothing to one doe’s ears. This night was also perfect to one red fox as it had been a few years since he had been out on the water but never like this. It was nice.

The nocturnal mammal had spotted the other as he scoped out the deck of the ship and had spotted her by the stern. With predator like stealth, he slowly crept up on her until he was right behind her… and froze when she spun around and placed a dagger on his throat, “...you’re not Lucky.” “And your not the Captain.”

Hopps placed the dagger back in the leather band on her leg before turning back towards the ocean, “sorry, Wilde likes to try to sneak up on me to scare me. It never works.”

“Well with reflexes like that I would be surprised if it ever did!” Sly chuckled softly before looking over the ocean as well, “I like to play pranks on Lucky once and awhile just to keep her on her toes… though I think I'm only making her mad and paranoid.” “Are you with her a lot?” “Oh constantly! We're practically attached at the hip at some points! It's nice to have her around, but a fox needs his personal space.” Lucky noticed the fond look in his eyes as he spoke of Lucky: the sparkle that he gets, “you’re in love with her, aren't you?”

Sly showed little that said the statement affected him… just a little puffing of his tail fur, “do I care for her? Yes, yes I do. Would I do anything to make her happy? Yes absolutely. Is it nice to have someone who sees you for you and not just ‘a fox’? Yeah… it is. There might be a little affection there, but I am not in love with Lucky. We're just friends.”

Hopps seemed to have interpreted this another way, “is it because she is a rabbit?”

“It's not because she’s a rabbit it's… it's complicated.”

“How so?”

“I've known Lucky for two years at this point and it's a blast having her around… but there are complicated, sciency things, that keep us from being anything more. And we're fine with that. Until something really _definitive_ shows us we can be together then we’ll get together… until then we're content with just being best friends,” he shrugged, ‘it's not like being with her would change anything about our dynamic, we would just be able to kiss and stuff. Nothing really needed for me and Cottontail.”

“Cottontail?”

“Yeah, it's one of the nicknames I have for her. That and Long Ears.”

“Really? Long Ears? Isn't that a little on the nose?” Asked Judith.

“Yeah, but she doesn't care all too much it's all in good fun. She’ll call me Slick or Red when she gets the chance,” he turned his gaze to Hopps, “does the Captain have any nicknames for you?” She scoffed, “what? No, he doesn't. He’s only ever called me Hopps or Judith… maybe Flatfoot on occasion, but that's once in a blue moon.”

Sly was surprised by this, “really? That's… different. Foxes are usually cunning, so I would’ve guessed that he would’ve had _some names_ for you.”

Judith laughed at his surprise, “is that so? What would my nickname be if _you_ gave it to me?” “Well I don't just want to use one of the ones I have for Lucky, but to be stereotypical I guess I would call you… _**Carrots**_. How does that sound?” Sly asked… but he never got a response, “Hopps? You hear me?” More silence, “Hopps… hey Hopps,” turned his attention to her: She was completely frozen, wide-eyed, and gripping the edge of the ship, “Hopps… Hopps… Judith… Hey Judith!” he had grabbed her shoulder, “Judith can you-” his words died on his tongue as he saw the glassy look in her eyes… as well as the green coloring lining the edges of her irises. He shook her for a few more seconds as he watched the green coloring fade away and Hopps broke from her trance, “Ugh…” she groaned as she held her head.

Sly was concerned, “Hopps are you okay?”

“Y-Yes… I’m fine, just a little headache,” she shook her head before looking back at Sly, “what… what were we talking about?” The question through Sly for a loop, _‘she… she lost some memory,’_ he thought as he put on a smirk, “nothing important.”

“Oh… okay then,” she proceeded to yawn, “well I think I’m heading off to bed, thank you for keeping me company tonight.” 

“No problem,” he replied as he watched her stroll off to the sleeping quarters. Once she was out of sight he let his mask drop just a little bit, _‘i have to tell Shadow about this in the morning…’_

_____

Seagulls squawked as they glided above _The Jolly Arrow_ as the ship sailed towards its destination: Camele Isle.

On the bridge, Captain Nicholas Piberius Wilde looked over his crew working nonstop in order to keep the ship in order. It was a sight to behold. Over to the side Wilde spotted the newcomers Shadow, Lucky, and Sly as conversated amongst themselves, _‘thank you, you three,’_ he thought as he went back to steering the ship to the Island he would call his home away from home.

_____

On the deck First Mate Hopps had done everything in her power to avoid Sly the whole morning: if he went below deck she came above, if he went to the stern she went to the bow, and she continued this ever since everyone had gotten up to work for the day. 

Shadow noticed this, “what’s up with Hopps?”

“I… I don't know.”

“Did something happen last night?”

Sly tensed up, “what happened?” Sly sighed, “I don't know: one moment we're talking about our respective fox and rabbit, which led us into a conversation about nicknames and… I’m not sure what happened after that.”

“Was she acting strange?” Asked Shadow.

“No, well yes, but only when we got to the topic of nicknames. Judith told me that the captain doesn't really have any nicknames for her.” This shocked Lucky, “really? Not even Carrots?” “And that's the thing!” he exclaimed, “when I mentioned the name ‘Carrots’ she like… froze, almost as if she was in a trance. It took me a bit to shake her out of it, but when I looked into her eyes… there was a ring of green in them. Once she snapped out of it Hopps didn't remember what we were talking about, so I told her nothing and let her go to bed.”

Shadow thought over this information, “green rings huh? Hm, maybe I should talk to Captain Wilde. The two seem really close, but act like they’ve only each other ever since Judith came on the ship. I’ll see what I can find out- you two just try to make friends. We need them to like us after all,” Shadow finished as he headed up to the bridge, _‘let's see what I can get out of Wilde…’_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's going on with Hopps? I have no idea... or do I?  
> (I totally know what's happening... :) Just wondering if you guys can figure it out)
> 
> This chapter also allowed me to show you all a little more into the relationship that is Finnick and Nicholas... even if it was just a taste. I've always enjoyed this pairing, so it's kinda the reason why I worked it in... that and for other lovely escapades to happen in the future ;) 
> 
> Anyways, that's all for now so I guess I'll see you guys on the 7th... or maybe earlier... all depends on how far I get in my writing, but nevertheless I'll see you guys later!


	4. 3- Not all shadows are nameless...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The crew of the Jolly Arrow makes their way to Camele Isle... where things are not all they seem...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's this? An update a week early?
> 
> For you guys maybe, but for me its something I've really thrown around as I write. I'm thinking of bouncing between a weekly/bi-weekly posting schedule as I continue to write, and I'm posting this week the next chapter should be out on the 14th.
> 
> I had a pretty busy week, so I'm hoping to get more chapters done by the next post, so I don't have to worry about falling behind. (I also have another story jangling around in my head, so that's another reason I want to get ahead... I want to get that one down on paper as well)
> 
> As always thank you so much to the people who are checking out my writing, and if you spot any grammatical/spelling errors let me know!
> 
> Onwards with the next chapter!

Rounded windows that outlooked the sea, a carved out bed area with a stained, redwood wardrobe, a beautiful stained table in the center end of the room, and full bookshelves running on both walls. There was a simple beauty to the room.

Shadow agreed, “your Captain’s Quarters is simple, but it’s very nice.”

“Thank you,” replied Wilde, “I spent many a year trying to have this place just the way I wanted, especially with all the shelves to store all of my trophies!” He proudly stated. Shadow smirked as he scanned the shelves filled to the brim with books, large necklaces, rings, and bracelets neatly organized amongst the different levels, “You have a lot of items here, and nicely sectioned off. You must have been traveling for a while.”

“Aye, been on the sea ever since I was 16 years old and the Captain of this fine ship when the previous one had passed when I was 20.”

“How old are you now?” “28. I’ve seen a lot, but there’s still so much more to explore! And many items to find!”

“And these,” Shadow gestured to the glass cabinet that held two staffs- one for a medium-sized mammal and other for a smaller mammal-, “I see you have plenty of books, rings, and other items, but you only seem to have these two staffs. Why?”

Wilde strolled over with two crystal glasses, holding rum- handing one to Shadow-, as he looked at the cabinet with him, “I found these in the remnants of a burnt down house, everything was charred black… expect these. I had Cornelius with me at the time, so I asked him to take and clean them before we put them in this here cabinet. And aren't they beautiful? Hand carved, wonderful woodwork detail, and such lovely crystals embedded near the top; Not exactly round, but the roughness of their texture gives them a unique look, don't you agree?”

“I do, but… you said Bogo put them in here?”

“Correct.”

“You’ve never handled them?”

“No, why would I? _I_ can’t use magic and I don't know anyone here on the ship who can,” Wilde explained as he down the last sip of his drink, “any other staff that I found just… didn't sit right with me for some reason. They were wonderful in their own right, but something just… _called to me_ when I saw these ones. That's why I took’em.”

Shadow nodded as he pinned this information in his head as he took a seat at the table, “and since we're on the topic of magic, you called us Magicians yesterday… Are spellcasters abundant here?”

Wilde seemed confused by the question, “well you _are_ one, so shouldn't you know this?”

“Let's just say… I’m not really from around here. Just explain it to me like I know nothing of the history here.”

“ _Okay_ ,” Wilde reluctantly agreed as he sat down, “I don't know much, but what I do know is that Magicians are uncommon and don't really like to show off their abilities. That's why when you saved us I was surprised to see you using magic so out in the open, it surprised me,” Wilde opened his muzzle to say something then furrowed his brows in confusion, “actually… there is this story my father told me when I was young. How did it go…”

_____

_Magic has always existed, but no one knew how to use it properly. There is no written scriptures no teachers… Anything. Those who use the magic use that as part of the tricks and shows… Not really understanding it’s what potential. That is until six powerful magicians emerged._

_The Illusionists could create constructs just by visualizing what he wanted his mind. His power also allowed him to warp the mind of a target and disorient/confuse them. His magic is easy to spot because of its purple hue._

_The Creationist took with the illusionist can do and took it one step further… They made it real. Occasionally using other small items to create something new The Creationist Could seemingly make things out of nothing. Their magic had a distinct orange color._

_The Emotionalist assisted anyone in whatever turmoil they were facing. This sorceress could see what you were feeling and acted accordingly in what was best. Her magic took the form of many colors depending on what emotion I was focusing on._

_The Elementalist had the power to manipulate the elements themselves. Storms and many weather based crises the Elementalist was able to counteract and prevent such major disasters. Her magic was mainly green but took other Hues depending on what elements it was controlling._

_The Light Summoner had power over lights and life itself. They were very adept at healing as well as creating many different constructs out of light and could cast away the darkness. Their magic was colored lights and various light grays._

_The Shadow Caster was the total opposite. The Shadow Caster manipulated death and darkness; Mammals who made enemies with her, however, found out first hand why she was one **not** to be messed with. Her magic was subsequently color black and various dark grays. _

_These were soon dubbed the **Inner Circle** , and they traveled the earth teaching young and old magic users how to properly harness their abilities. These six magicians spent years spreading their knowledge to the world and after many decades the World of Magic seemed ever stronger… but one of them wanted more. The Shadow Caster spent years trying to convince her fellow Circle Members that they could so much more with their abilities other than teaching. The Illusionist and Emotionalist saw her points but ultimately denied her cause._

_After many years she finally snapped._

_She turned against her fellow Magicians in an attempt to overthrow them and become the sole Magician of the Inner Circle. Her plan was flawed as the five other Magicians were just too strong for the lone sorceress to handle. In the end, the remaining Circle members stripped the Shadow Caster of her voice and ability to hold information, having the events of the day erased every time. They had locked her in a cavern never to be seen again as they continued to spread their knowledge to the world until their final breaths._

_____

As Wilde finished telling the story Shadow sat back in awe at the torrent of information that was spat his way, “wow… that… that was something. And your father told you that as a bedtime story?”

“Wilde raised an eyebrow as he stared down at the table, “y-yeah… I… I think. I'm kinda surprised myself, to be honest. I wasn't expecting to remember all of that, it's been so long since I’ve heard that I…” he chuckled as he went to fill both glasses back up, “I guess we both learned something new today, huh?” 

“Yeah… I’d say.”

_____

After three days of sailing that had finally made to their destination: Camele Isle, the home of thieves, beggars, and- most of all- pirates who had nowhere else to go. The Jolly Arrow docked, allowing the crew to leave to either fetch some supplies or have some fun while on the island.

Finnick needed some time to himself, so he went off to drink while the Captain, Hopps, Shadow, Sly, and Lucky explored the island. The latter three had never been so Wilde made it his mission to show them all of what the island had to offer. While dangerous to newcomers with little to no knowledge of the happenings here Wilde had a feeling that they could hold out on their own just fine, so this was just the time to sightsee: the taverns and shops of the town, the ever expansive forest, and the mesmerizing waterfalls on the east side of the island. Truly beautiful in its own right.

As the five sat in one of the many taverns here on Camele Isle Hopps- in her way of apologizing for avoiding him the past few days- decided to test Sly’s liquor intake… suffice to say she was thoroughly impressed.

After downing his eighth glass of rum she let out a hearty laugh and slapped him on the back, “Now that's what I’m talkin’ about! You’ve got a tolerance on you fox!”

“Ha Ha! It’ll take more to throw me three sheets to the wind! Lucky doesn't let me drink all too often, but during the years before I met her I spent some time going out to drink with friends,” Sly signaled for a water, “but I _do_ have my limits, so best not overdo it before getting back on the ship.”

“Oh there’s no need worry about that, we won’t boarding the ship ‘til the morning,” Hopps scooted closer, “so why don't we have some _fun_ before then…”

A torrent of coughing erupted from Sly’s maw as the water he was drinking caught in his throat because of Hopps- something he wasn't expecting. He spent a good few minutes trying to quail the coughing fit as Hopps calmed down from her hysterical laughing fit, “*cough* *cough* *cough* Glad to see- *cough* *cough* … that you find pleasure in my pain…”

Judith wiped tears out of her eyes before responding, “Oh come on slick I’m only joking.”

“I know, I just thought… from how you eyed Lucky, I thought you played for the other team.”

She shrugged, “eh, it really depends on my mood. Mammals are mammals after all,” he watched as she stood up and walked over to the restroom- _‘huh… didn't know they had public bathrooms…’_ \- as he took the time to make his way over to Lucky, who was sitting alone, “Hey stranger.”

She faced Sly with a smile on her face, “Sly, come to keep me company?”

“Yeah. My drinking buddy went off to use the bathroom- did you know they have public toilets?”

Lucky nodded, “I did, I remember distinctly paying attention to what Shadow had to say before coming here. You should try it sometime,” she snarky added. 

Sly held a paw over his heart, “oh… you wound me Lucky, I thought we were friends.”

“We are, but you can be a real knucklehead sometimes.”

“That's one of my best qualities!” He exclaimed, getting a laugh out of his partner, “so where’s Shadow and The Captain? I thought they were hanging with you while Buccaneer Bunny tried to get me drunk.”

She looked out one of the windows, “they were, but Wilde wanted to take Shadow off and show him some pickpocketing techniques… I swear it amazes me how he’s a captain.”

“Don't forget that he’s also a pirate.”

“True…” Lucky looked down at her glass before coming to a decision and standing up, “let's go.”

“What?”

“Let's go what else the island has in store; We already spent hours looking around and spent that much time sitting here in a bar, so… let go somewhere!”

Sly processed what was being thrown at him before smirking, “alright… lead the way Cottontail.”

_____

Walking through a forest at night was always something of a pastime for Lucky whenever she got the chance. Back home she did have that kind of luxury unless she visited her family… it was calming to her.

Without the access to any lanterns, she relied on Sly’s superior night vision to guide them… she felt safe in his presence, “this is nice isn't it?”

“Yeah, I would say so… Is there anything you particularly want to do out here?”

“No… I just wanted to go for a walk is all.”

Sly snorted, “then shouldn't we have waited for everyone else, kinda selfish of you to not invite any of them.”

“We have the entire time to spend with everyone else… I just wanted this time with you.”

“We _always_ have time together Cottontail. We never seem to out of each other sight for more than 10 minutes at a time!”

Lucky started laughing the longer he talked, “I swear people back home think we're married with how much time we spend together!”

“They do not!”

“They do too! I spend a good part of our…” he stopped talking.

“Sly? What-” “Shush!” He placed a digit on her lips, “I think I hear someone…” his voice was considerably lower. Lucky took his cue and tried swiveling her ears to see if she heard anything. 

...one… two… three… four… fi- _CRACK!_

The sound of a thick branch snapping raised the hackles of Sly while both of their ears shot straight up. They turned to each other, “ _run._ ”

The two took off into a sprint back towards town and away from the sound, but it seems to be following them. The faster they ran the more noise from behind. They could see the lights of the taverns when they both collapsed to the ground muzzle first… something had caught them by the legs. 

Sly couldn't even see what it was it was just… black. He tried to reach into his coat to pull out his wand, but the black tendrils snaked their way around and trapped his arm. The shadows seem to snake around both fox and rabbit and as the void overtook their vision they were just barely able to spot a figure approach them, “you shouldn't ever walk around at night without a source of light… you never know what could be lurking in the darkness…”

_____

Shadow and Wilde had returned to the tavern pockets full and both satisfied, “see? Now wasn't that fun?”

Shadow sighed, “I _suppose_ … It _is_ easier when the mammals we're taking from are three times our size, they don't really notice guys like us.”

“Exactly! And can you believe that amount of ‘us’ sized things they had? I swear this has been the best haul yet in all my years of coming here!”

“Yeah yeah,” Shadow dismissed as he scanned the bar, spotting Hopps. He made his way over when she noticed the two, “hey guys! Have fun?”

“Definitely!” Wilde proclaimed, “where are the other two?”

“Probably off wandering off somewhere, when I finished using the restroom they were both gone.” 

“Gone?” Shadow asked, “and how long ago was that?”

She thought for a moment, “maybe… an hour? Two? *Hic* Everything’s kinda… blurrin’ together. I'm sure they’re fine.”

“Yeah… you’re probably right. Hey listen you guys go find Finnick and make sure he’s not getting into any trouble, I'm gonna go look for Sly and Lucky- I have something to talk to them about.”

Wilde nodded as he helped Hopps out of her seat and headed out. Shadow did the same and made his way around the building so no one could see him, and once he was certain no one was around he lifted the sleeve of his coat to reveal a watch… a _wristwatch_. One of shining silver metal and glowing blue accents. He tapped the face of the watch and a map overview came up of the island, _‘Sly and Lucky don't just wander off, and even if they did they should've been back by now… something’s wrong….’_ he thought as after a minute went by and two glowing dots appeared… on the north end of the island, “and they definitely didn't wander off to the other side of the island on their own,” he sighed, “what did you two get looped up into now?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What a chapter, huh?
> 
> A magic lore dump, a bit of light shined on Captain Wilde and- kinda- his past and Sly and Lucky were taken by some mysterious person... oh yeah, and it seems Shadow has something that's _a little_ out of place. (trust me I checked...) And sorry for the cliffhanger, but things are gonna get _real interesting_ soon... at least I hope you think so...
> 
> And as always I'll see you guys later!


	5. 4- A past born from Shadows

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We find out who took our wandering pair and what they're really after...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y'all! I'm back with the next chapter of Swords and Sorcerers!
> 
> I won't keep you too long: you see mistakes, tell me and I'll fix them! Now let's get right into it!

The tod and doe struggle against the rope binding them together, but to no avail. Even if they could get themselves free there was also the problem of the six hooded mammals, all much larger than them, circled around them.

Neither had any recollection of how they got here: a very secluded part of the first with the only light being from a few torches scattered about. They continued to struggle as a seventh mammal, who was a male lion, saunter over to them. His fur was a greyish color while the mane was a shine of black the rabbit and fox had never seen before. The lion also had a scar running down the side of his muzzle… and contrasting with his whole look we're his baby blue eyes that shined through the dark.

He started speaking, “Finally… after so many years I, at last, have found the two of you. It should have been an easy task considering all I had to do was trace your magic signature… but nothing ever came up until recently,” his voice was gravely and hard like this was the first time he had spoken in forever. He continued, “but no matter, all that matters now is that I have the two of you… _Loxless and Hightail_.”

He began pacing when he realized something, “you probably don't know who I am, how rude of me,” he bowed and placed his right paw on his chest, revealing how scarred and devoid of fur it was, “my name is Michael Clanweaver, descendant of the **Shadow Caster** _Olivia Clanweaver_. It feels wonderful to finally meet you two.”

The two small mammals gave looks to each other before Sly spoke, “and… are we supposed to know what any of that means?”

Michael was taken aback by this, “are you supposed… yes! It's because of _your families_ that we’ve spent most of our lives hiding!” His anger rose and he began to growl and show off his sharp fangs… before he gave the most blood-curdling laugh imaginable, “I see… you must've forgotten our story. I guess that's what I should expect from a _fox_ … your kind was never good at listening. There was six Master Magician that spread their knowledge to the world, they were called the Inner Circle. Each Magician specialized in a different form of magic: The fox was a Master of Illusions, The wolf manipulated creation itself, The rabbit had power over the elements, The buffalo understood every emotion and their purpose, The cougar was a Master of healing and light… and the lioness oversaw death and bent the shadow to her will. When Olivia tried to enlighten the others to show them that they all could do so much more… they turned against her. They stipped her of her ability to speak and remember,” his smile grew wickedly large, “but maybe they should’ve taken her ability to write and bare children, but alas they were too stupid to realize what they’ve done.”

Clanweaver flexed his paws as black circles appeared on the back, and the two watched as the shadows seemed to press together and form various tendril that snaked around the lion, “Because of them my family has waited _for years_ to get our revenge! That’s why I wanted the two of you,” he drew out as he rested a paw on each struggling mammal’s head, “one of your ancestors refused mine because of the other… and that was a _poor decision_.”

The other figures began chanting as a huge intricate circle glowed beneath the fox and rabbit much to their dismay, “What's happening? What are you doing?!” Demanded Lucky, fire burning in her eyes.

Michael laughed, “You see, where the original Shadow Caster failed was because she only had her _own_ power to use… I plan on having them _all!_ I will be the most powerful magician and nobody will stop me! Least of all you…” The markings on his paws shifted to a dark grey as he brought his fists together and began chanting as well, “ _ **Sepka Un Reshe Tanke Zuell…**_ ” And as he began to chant the wails of pain filled the air.

Lucky whimpered and screamed as Sly groaned and roared, the feeling of their beings shredded apart and stripped down to nothing was a pain neither had felt before.

Tears brimmed in both of their eyes as the ritual progressed and they watched as they began to glow, but noticed the glow waver and flicker- like a candle in the wind.

This went on for a few more minutes before the lion stopped chanting and the markings of his paws dissolved, “no… no, no, no! Something’s wrong… their magic... it's different, it's not like how it's supposed to be!”

As the lion roared in confusion, Sly and Lucky took the chance to steady themselves for what was the most painful experienced they’ve had so far. Their moment of peace didn't last long, however, as Clanweaver was now inches from their faces, “I don't understand! Why is your magic different?! It should be…” the words were lost to him, however, as he noticed a little detail he hadn't before.

Michael lifted the chin of Lucky and examined her, "Your eyes… they’re a different color. They’re… they’re not supposed to be red!” He roared as he backhanded the rabbit, sending her and the fox tumbling across the ground.

“I don't… this doesn't make sense. I could sense your magic when you stepped onto the island! You should…” the words died once again as Sly sat him and Lucky up, rage burning through his golden irises, “oh… I see,” he straightened himself out, “I managed to grab the _wrong fox and rabbit!_ ” He seethed through his teeth and the darkness engulfed his right arm and he lashed out in anger just above the taken. The silence was deafening until the sound of falling trees echoed throughout the forest.

Michael took a deep breath, “It seems I have made a miscalculation, no matter, I will find the proper ones sooner or later… until then,” he once again approached the two, but right before he could touch the doe once more the other snapped at his paw, “ _don't… don't you dare touch her!_ ” 

The lion was surprised by this, “same kind of fire, but not the same fox. You’re protective of her, aren't you? Does this whore belong to you? How _disgusting…_ ” The lion stood to full height as he held a wicked grin, “I wonder if she’s the same with you, you _pelt!_ And since I seem to have no more use for you two,” many small circles formed in front of Sly as black tendrils stopped just mere inches from his face.

“Sly!” Lucky called out as her heart stopped. Clanweaver chuckled, “I'm curious… how much _can_ a fox bleed?”

“Sorry to say you won't be finding out today,” a voice rang out throughout the forest, causing many of the hooded mammals the spin around in confusion.

“It seems you’ve taken something from me that doesn't belong to you, and I would very much appreciate it if you gave them back,” the male voice seemed to be coming from every direction, echoing around.

The irritated Michael, ‘Who’s there?! Where are you?!”

The voice laughed, “Wouldn't you like to know…”

Michael glared at all of his disciples, “don't just stand there, find them!” He ordered, watching the other scramble in every which way. The voice spoke again, “You should really be careful spending your time in the dark… you never know what might be lurking within…”

The lion frantically took his eyes to the treetops trying to scan for any type of movement, “How did you find us?”

“Wouldn't _you_ like to know…”

“I am not someone to be messed with!”

“Neither am I…” The ruffling of treetops had Clanweaver shoot tendrils in every which way as he couldn't pinpoint the origin, “This is the environment that I _excel_ in... a wise man once told me to use the cover of darkness to hide your actions, and how right he was.”

“ _Who are you?_ ”

“I go by many names- some you could understand, others that would make you wonder what I really am, but the one I _really_ love the most,” with the ruffle of his coat the red wolf landed behind the tied up fox and rabbit, “let's just say there's a reason they call me _Shadow_ …”

Michael flicked his wrist which opened black voids that had his disciples filter out of, “You made a _grave error_ by coming here mutt.”

“Have I?” He asked as he unsheathed his claws and effortlessly cut through Sly and Lucky’s bindings, “because from my point of view I see seven mammals who believe they have us caught in a trap, and from my experience there is one thing you never ever put in a trap.”

“Oh? And what might that be?”

Shadow reached into his coat and pulled out a small orb and a pair of black visors while the tod and doe latched themselves to his jacket. He smirked, “me.”

In one swift motion, the wolf threw on the visor, activated the orb, and tossed it into the air as it froze and unleashed a blinding light. The seven mammals were stunned by the sheer whiteness of the light that they didn't notice the sound of electricity filling the air before fading away. Once the light had finally died Michael noticed that the three mammals were nowhere to be seen, “Arg! Find them, now!” The others scattered once more as the lion huffed, his eyes growing dark, “Shadow… you’ve made a big mistake by making an enemy of me…”

_____

A stream of yellow lightning whizzed through the forest before coming to a stop right before the back entrance to the town. Shadow allowed Sly and Lucky to climb off of him as he twisted the rim of his watch, “are you two okay?”

Sly placed his paws on his hips as he let out some air, “yeah I’m good. I always forget how fast you can go with that activated…”

“Lucky what about you?”

“Other than my face stinging from when he hit me,” Sly let out a small growl, “I think I'm okay.”

“Good,” Shadow let out before irritation filled his face, “what were you two thinking?! You know you’re not supposed to be wandering off on your own like that! We stick close by, and if you want to go on your own you have to tell me first! I had to use this,” he stated lifting his sleeve to reveal the watch, “in order to track you guys down… you know how I try to avoid using tech in worlds like these, especially since the invention of _normal _wristwatches isn't for another 183 years.”__

____

____

Both small mammals looked downtrodden, “we're sorry Shadow,” Lucky began, “I just wanted some time with Sly, we’ll be careful next time.”

“You better, now if I’m guessing correctly those goons are still going to be after us so let's find the captain and see if we can convince him the leave tonight.”

“And what about Black Lion back there, we gonna tell the captain about that?” Sly asked.

“For now let's keep that to ourselves, I want to research more before we go starting a panic. Now, tell me who that was and why he wanted you…”

_____

It was around 2 in the morning, by Shadow's count, as the Jolly Arrow departed from the port of Camele Isle and headed off once more. Wilde didn't take it too kindly to having to leave in the middle of the night, but after being told that a few mammals tried to pick a fight with Sly and hurt Lucky- a lie they come up with on the spot- he agreed to set sail.

Sly and Luck had told Shadow who the lion was and why he wanted them, which made sense as he considered the story he learned about a few days prior, “so this Michael is after Wilde and Hopps’ magic… that could be troublesome.”

“Well we don't specifically know if he’s after them, he _did_ call us Loxless and Hightail after all,” Lucky pointed out, “he might just be after another fox and rabbit and just mistook us for them.”

Sly scoffed at her naivety, “when is it _ever_ that simple Long Ears? He was after a fox and rabbit, which probably means he’s after the captain and Hopps.”

“He's right you know,” Shadow stood up and began pacing around the Crew's Quarters between the barrels, hammocks, and support beams, “Wilde and Hopps could have easily changed their names to avoid detection, but that still doesn't explain why Clanweaver was able to pinpoint your magic but not the other two’s.”

“They could _not_ have magic, did you ever think about that?”

Shadow shot a look at Sly as he sighed, “I’ve gone through the books Captain Wilde has in his Quarters and they’re all related to magic one way or another. He also has plenty of amulets, rings, and bracelets that contain magic themselves, but he acts as they’re just trinkets that he’s collected over the years… and there's the thing with Hopps when you mentioned the nickname ‘Carrots’. Something doesn't seem right with those two,” Shadow shook his head as if to clear his thoughts, “but we can worry about it later. Michael seems to be the descendant, as he said, of the original Shadow Caster from the story Wilde told me, at least he believes he is. I don't know if he's telling the truth until we encounter him again, until then like I said, we don't mention this to anyone until we know more. Got it?”

“No problem.” “I understand.”

“Good, now get some sleep we have a long trip ahead of us.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was something, wasn't it? We finally get the introduction to this story's villain, Michael Clanweaver, and what he's after! But that leaves things to be desired:
> 
> Why the names Loxless and Hightail? Why does he want the Captain and Hopps when he could take anyone else? And what's up with Hopps and the name "Carrots"?
> 
> All in due time, but as always comment what you think and what might happen, and if you have any questions ask me and I'll see if I can answer them!
> 
> See you all next week!


	6. 5- Insight into Others

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Life aboard The Jolly Arrow is peaceful in many respects, and it allows stores of those not told to be brought to life!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Greeting everyone! How y'all doing?
> 
> I'm doing just fine, as I prepare for my transition into college... and I have to say I'm pretty nervous, but it's going to be an exciting new chapter in my life and I'm looking forward to it!
> 
> And speaking of new chapters, (nice segway), I'm happy to give you the new part of Swords and Sorcerers! It'll be more a relaxing chapter, delving into some of the characters and lore, so I hope you enjoy! 
> 
> Like always, any mistakes you spot tell me and I'll fix them.
> 
> And without further ado, let's get right to it!

It’s been a day since Sly and Lucky were taken by Michael nothing of the event was every brought up with Wilde or anyone. It was just an ordinary day on the ship with the crew just going about whatever they do. 

Clear skies once again, so it was a pretty nice day to go around and “talk to the locals” as Sly puts it. The three mammals went around to see what the other crew members were doing, which seemed to fascinate Lucky more than anything. She’s never been on a pirate ship before so she was intrigued with all the parts and how they worked together to drive the massive vessel. Sly and Shadow left her to her own accord as they split to talk to others.

A few hours went by and Lucky found herself in the Crow’s Nest with Butch. A cool breeze grazed her short fur as she took in the sights, “it's so peaceful up here: the solitude, the view, the ability to see to the far corners… I like it up here!” 

Wolford chuckled at that, “yeah those were just a few reasons why I have the Captain assign me up her most of the time… I like to be alone with my thoughts.” 

Lucky’s ears drooped hearing this, “oh… I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-”

“No no, it's fine! I didn't mean I didn't like having you up here… it does get lonely at times.”

Seagulls squawked as he sighed, “actually...do you want to see a picture of my spouse?”

Her ears perked up, “you’re married?”

“Well not exactly… here I think…” Wolford began muttering to himself as he searched his pockets, “where did i... It should be… Ah! Here it is!” He unfolded the picture and handed it to the rabbit: it was an image of another male wolf and a female cub, “he… his name is Lockhart and the little one is Vanessa.” The picture was of the two sitting in front of a home- the cub didn’t look much older than two or three.

“They seem lovely, and your daughter is the cutest thing! Why aren’t they here with you?” Lucky asked, which she immediately noticed had the wolf’s tail puff up.

Wolford said nothing for a few moments before retrieving the picture from the rabbit and stare at it, gently rubbing the edges, “there was an accident… it had separated the three of us, more specifically me from them. I was badly hurt in the process and one of the last memories I had were of Bogo looking down on me. Wilde and his crew nursed me back to health and one I was better they helped me home, but…” his ears began to fall as his tail drooped, “their kindness was also a curse. It took me weeks to recover and… in that time they believed I had died. I had never seen Lockhart _so broken_ before,” his ears dropped flat against his head, “I ran… like a coward. I indirectly caused the ones I loved pain and that ate me up inside. When I told the captain what happened and what I did he didn’t judge me, and he even offered a place on his crew for me to stay.”

“How… How long has it been since you’ve seen them?”

“A little over 8 years… I’ve always planned to go back, but… what would I say to them? ‘Hi love, hello daughter, it’s your father and lover back from the dead!’ I wouldn't even know how they would react… if they’d resent me for it…”

Lucky placed a comforting paw in the wolf’s leg as she stared up at him, “if either one of them loved you as much as you probably do them then… they might be a bit surprised, but ultimately they’ll understand. When you care for someone you normally forgive their stupid mistakes- you may have abandoned them slightly, but that was out of fear and not because you wanted too.”

The wolf looked down at the doe, tears at the corner of his eyes, “thank you… you don’t know how much that means to me…”

Lucky smiled, “we all have our little issues… sometimes you need time to see that they’re not all bad.”

_____

Sly made small talk with the other members of the crew, and by the start of the afternoon, he pretty much was friendly with everyone here on The Jolly Arrow. His ability to read mammals came in handy in understanding what made each one of them tick and how to use that.

The only ones he hadn’t talked to was The Captain, Hopps, and Ben and Bogo. He didn’t feel like distracting Wilde and Shadow was already talking it up with Hopps, so that only left one option, ‘we’ll won’t this be interesting,’ he thought as he made his way into the hull where he saw the two last.

What he found was not what he was expecting: Cornelius had Benjamin pinned up against the wall engaging in a passionate trailer of lips like a couple of lovesick teenagers. They didn’t appear to have noticed the fox and he could have easily walked away and come back a different time, you know, like any other rational being.

Sly was not one of those. He whistled, “Howey! Now _that_ was something to behold!”

The sudden knowledge of someone else brought their make-out session to a dead stop as the turned to face the intruder red-faced and embarrassed, “now I knew you two were together, but I never pegged you for the romantically passionate type Bogo… it’s rather fitting I must say.”

The buffalo glared at the fox as he spoke, “is there an _actual reason_ on why you’re down here fox? Because if not I have no problem _throwing you out!_ ”

“Actually I _do_ have a reason,” he jumped up onto the many stacks of boxes around and sat, “and it directly ties into what you were doing not even a few minutes prior: how did you two meet? And what led to… you know, this?” The hull was filled with silence as the two big males looked at each other for some signal on what to do. They were lost.

Sly threw them a bone, “look,” he began, dropping his sarcastic mask a little, “I _am_ genuinely curious about how you two got together. I’m not going to criticize you, I’m not going to belittle you, that’s not the kind of mammal I am.” His eyes twinkled with truth before his mask slipped back into place, “I’ll probably just tease… that's usually how I show my interest in something.”

Bogo eyed Clawhauser to see how he was feeling about this, and getting a nod of agreement from his lover he let out a sigh, “we met at a baker's.”

“Yeah, I kinda figured considering the lovely size that Benjamin is,” the cheetah started blushing profusely, “not that there's anything wrong with that Clawhauser as you look wonderful just the way you are!” 

The cheetah was tomato red at this point as he tried to clear his throat to speak, “w-well, um, it wasn't… it wasn't just any baker's, it was my family’s shop.”

“That sounds even better!”

“Y-yeah… The Captain and the crew were m-making a stop for supplies and came into town, t-that's when Cornelius came in.”

The Buffalo huffed, “we needed food, so I instructed Ben to make a ship’s worth and even paid him for it.”

“That order took me days to complete!” The cheetah exclaimed as he seemed to calm down and relish in the past, “every day you would visit and see the progress of everything, it was _so annoying!_ ”

It was the buffalo’s turn to blush, “well the captain needed the food… I was just checking to see if you were slacking off…”

“Slacking off?!” Benjamin scoffed as he placed his paws on his hips, “listen here mister: that baker's shop has been in my family for generations! I learned how to cook and bake from my parents and grandparents, so don't you start going on about me ‘slacking off’’ you… you…” The blush returned with a vengeance, “you just wanted to see me…”

“W-Well…” Bogo blew hot air out his snout as he tried to compose himself, “yes, I wanted to see you. You were… different.”

The cheetah turned to Sly, “it took about two weeks to cook all the food he wanted since I had to make multiple runs because I kept running out of ingredients! While I cooked Bogo here always kept me company, always asked me about my day, always… so nice. I think I fell for him right there… but it wasn't until he came back months later, when they came by for more supplies, that he asked if wanted to come with them,” he contently sighed as he brushed up against the water buffalo, “and then we’ve just been… together since then. Even under all that gruff and tough, there’s a kind heart.”

“C-Clawhauser!” He started rubbing the back of his neck before moving to Ben’s, causing the cheetah to start purring, “I love you.”

“I love you too my strong buffalo,” Ben proclaimed as he pulled Cornelius into a soft kiss.

There were points during the storytelling that Sly wanted to input some kind of remark or tease… but he was content just listening to them talk.

That was until the kiss, “you two should get a room,” which brought on another round of blushing from the cheetah and glares from the water buffalo. Sly chuckled, ‘it's nice to see them happy…’

_____

After asking Captain Wilde if he could borrow some books Shadow decided to take a break and get some fresh air. In a short few hours, the red wolf had learned many things about the magic and its users here, and he was thoroughly impressed.

Magicians started showing signs of their powers around age 6- though sometimes it could be later- and they could use any type unless the family’s bloodline specialized in a certain type of magic. Young magic users were trained until the age of 18, when they fully mature, and by that point will have specific skills in one of the branches. Once they dive down a certain path, if they only work on one, their abilities in the other branches “shrivel up” as it was thus preventing them from properly using spells from that branch unless trained by one of a specific path. This made what Michael had done a little easier to understand, _‘he can't use the other magics… that's why he needs other Magicians,’_ Shadow thought as he walked around the deck, _‘other magic users aren't easy to find, most probably disguise their “scent” to prevent tracking… that's why he was able to find Sly and Lucky so easily since I don't hide their scents. I have a feeling that he’s not just going to stay on Camele Isle, so there's a chance that he be traveling as well and-’_

_BAM!_

Shadow had ignored his surroundings and didn't see where he was walking and ran into someone… more accurately he tripped over someone.

As the wolf gripped his head from an oncoming headache he looked down to see who he tripped over: someone with long ears and gray fur. The ruffled cream blouse, slightly baggy striped pants, and the leather corset and feet guards gave away which ash colored mammal he tripped over, “Hopps I apologize! Sorry, I was thinking and I seemed to have lost myself in thought I didn't-”

The doe held up her paw as she got herself back to her feet, “it's fine Shadow, I was obviously also at fault since you are a bigger animal who I shoulda seen coming.” She dusted herself off as Shadow did the same, “may I ask what had you so isolated from reality?”

“The was just reading up on magic in some of the books the captain had and was going over the information in my head. There were so many interesting points I learned that I kept going over them.”

Hopps tilted her head in confusion, “but you are a Magician, shouldn’t you already know the things you ‘learned’?”

“Well yes,” he lied, “but it was just interesting to see it explained in such vivid detail. It was appreciated. Actually,” Shadow began wanting to change subjects, “would you mind if we talked? I feel like I haven't had a chance to properly have a chat with you since taking refuge on the ship.”

“Sure, I don't see any issue with that!”

The two strolled over the bow of the ship and sat down on some barrels that were propped up over there, “what was your life before you met Captain Wilde? I'm interested to know more about your history.”

“Well,” she began, “my memory’s a bit fuzzy of my childhood, but my teenage years are very clear to me,” she grinned mischievously as she looked up at the sky, “mammals always dismissed my small stature, ao it made it very easy to use that to my advantage. I wouldn't steal things, but I could sneak into place for free with ease and convinced others to buy me things by acting ‘cute and adorable’.” Hopps said the last part with a hint of irritation and disgust, “rabbits always seem ‘cute’ to other big mammals, and even when I hate it when people call me cute… it was a useful tool to get things when I couldn't afford them.”

“And I assume you learned swordsmanship before finding Captain Wilde?”

“Aye,” she agreed, “I snuck into a few fencing classes in some towns, so I picked up some things. It wasn't really until I met Wilde that I really developed a style that worked for me.”

“And you hadn’t met Wilde before then?”

“Well,” she scratched her chin, “I mean… he seemed familiar at first, but I shook it off as just looking like other red foxes I met- they’re normally lean so it gets kind of hard to differentiate them sometimes.”

Shadow laughed, “some could say the same things about rabbits.”

“Heh, yeah, the only striking feature about me is my eyes since rabbits don't normally have such vibrant irises,” she explained.

The two talked, trading stories back and forth until the sun was beginning to set when Judith stood up, “well it was nice to talk with you Shadow, you’re a pretty interesting wolf.” He snorted, “I’ll take that compliment and give one back: I had a wonderful time chatting with you Hopps, you’re more insightful than I would’ve thought.” And with that, the doe walked away leaving Shadow alone.

As the wolf watched the rabbit make her way into the hull his smile began to fade, _‘she could barely remember anything from her childhood and when I asked about her parents or alluded to other foxes she met she had problems recalling… what is up with her and Wilde? They have some of the same symptoms, I wonder…’_ the wolf thought as he jotted some notes down in a journal he had on his person.

Flipping through the pages he had passed some that were backgrounds on the mammals he had talked to on the ship, but the one was filled up the most was Finnick’s: Most of the notes were about his mannerisms and even more on the pouch he carries with notes like What is it made of? Or What does it hold? Or Why does he need it?

Questions he was sure that he would have a chance to ask the fennec when he got the chance… and maybe that chance would come sooner than expected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So how was that, did you enjoy it?
> 
> We got a little more insight into Wolford and life before as well as how Ben and Bogo met! I've always been a sucker for ClawBogo, as their dynamic would be lovely to see. 
> 
> Tell me your thoughts because I would love to know what you think of the story so far!
> 
> Anyways, I'll see you guys later.


	7. 6- Close together and Secrets Implied

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's this? A double upload? Trust me when I say that your eyes do not deceive you.
> 
> I thought I'd give you all a nice little present my fustercluck of a writing piece ;) Afterall, we've almost hit 500 hit, which is an accomplishment in itself! So let's not delay this chapter any further!
> 
> Apologies for some of the dialogue later in the chapter, I was having a problem having it flow comfortably so watch out for that. (If you have any suggestions on how to fix it it would be greatly appreciated- I want to put out something I'm proud of for all of you!)
> 
> So here it is, the next chapter of Swords and Sorcerers!

The light of a new day shined through the tinted glass, shining directly into the emerald eyes of one red fox. He did his best to roll over and block out the light but to no avail. So with many attempts of trying to regain sleep the fox groaned as he fluttered his eyes open, “*sigh* time to get up I guess…” He muttered as he rolled out of bed.

The tod was careful in not to disturb his bedmate- one loudly snoring, sand-colored fox- as he stretched and threw on some undergarments. He tossed on his leather pants and grabbed an apple out of the bowl he had sitting around and took a huge bite out of it. He normally didn't eat fruit other than blueberries- when he could find some- but it was always smart to put variety in your pallet.

As he munched on his breakfast he grazed his digits lightly against the spines of all of the books he had decorating his shelves, scanning the titles if written on. He was curious about how some of them were about magic but quickly shook it off as coincidence since there were so many books in the world he was _bound_ to grab a few magic inscriptures.

He tried on a few of the rings he also had sitting on his shelves, staring at the jewels and decorated bands, but ultimately put them down as he collected the four simple gold rings he put on normally and set them down on the table. He sat back down on the bed as he stared across at the mirror on the other side of the semi-large room. He was quite muscular for a fox, but it was in a way where it was practical and not unneeded and he _definitely_ wasn't a beanpole. He traced his claws against the many faded scars that covered his torso, back and arms. He had been in many fights over the 12 years as a pirate and even some before then. Each one was its own story and even though he could remember all of them he always remembered the most memorable ones.

As he scanned his scars for a little longer as he heard a soft groan and paws started sliding up his back. He chuckled, “morning my love, how was your sleep?”

The fennec continued to explore his partner’s back as his let out hot air through his nose, “mornin’,” he muttered out, “it was peaceful with you here…”

“Well, I should hope so! You treat me like a giant pillow with the way you’re always nuzzled into me.”

“Hmm… fur’s warm…” Finnick let out as he began to fall back asleep.

“Hey now,” Wilde said shaking the other’s shoulder, “there will be none of that! You woke up, so it's time to get up!”

More groaning, “ugh… you know we’re nocturnal right?”

“Yes, and the nights we share are always _exhilarating_ , but as much as I want to stay here with you we have things to take care of.”

“Ugh… fine fine,” the fennec let out as he propped himself up on his shoulders and blinked his eyes open. Once he felt like he was more than just barely conscious he crossed his legs at stared up at the other, “hey.”

“Hey yourself,” the red fox responded as the other went back to exploring his body.

“Lookin’ at the scars again?” 

“Yeah, it's always nice to remind myself that I have them. A man without scars has no stories to tell.”

“Oh yeah?” Finnick asked in his deep voice, “and who said that?”

Nicholas smirked, “me of course!” Finnick snorted, “you’re so full of it.” “I’m full of something alright…” Finnick roughly punched Nick in the shoulder blade as he hopped up and nuzzled the tod in his course neck fur.

Nick arched his eyebrows, “you’re giving me mixed signals here Deserttail, are you irritated with me or are you trying to get me to go for a second round?”

“Yes.”

Wilde let out a hearty laugh, “and as much as I would love to like I said, we have things to do today.”

“Ugh fine,” Finnick let out as he tossed off the covers and let to pick up his clothes off the ground, Nick grinned, “I love you.” “Tsk, yeah yeah I know…”

“Aw come on you can't do that to me! Can you say it back?” Silence, “please?’ More silence, “please,” he said as he began tilting his head and batting his eyes.

Finnick turned around to the large orbs that were Wilde’s eyes and sighed, “man… I can't say no to that face,” he admitted as he jumped back on the bed, placing a warm kiss on his cheek, “I love you too.”

“Thank you,” the Captain inquired as he stood up and continued getting ready.

_____

Feeling the cool spray of the sea and the smell of salt hit Nicholas’ face he was ready for the new day. Donning a maroon colored coat with gold detailing, a loose white shirt with cross lacing on the chest, and a large black leather belt that held loose black rags Wilde dusted off his Captain’s hat before placing it firmly on his head. Finnick wore a similar white shirt, a sleeveless leather vest, and brown leggings. He was situating the more rounded, hourglass-shaped, pouch on his belt as he stayed by Nicholas’ side as the made it up to the deck.

The birds squawked overhead as Wilde scanned the ship and seeing everyone of his crew at least doing _something productive_ brought a smile to his face. He spotted the three he wanted to talk to and strolled over, “good morning you three! Can I assume you had a restful sleep last night?” The wolf, bunny, and fox nodded, “great! I'm glad to hear that. Shadow I thank you for returning the books you borrowed yesterday, I appreciate it.”

“And thank _you_ for letting me borrow them, I learned a lot from the details in them so it was very helpful. Any plans for today? A chosen destination?”

Wilde thought for a moment, “well we already resupplied, though not as much as I wanted, so we could pick up somethings at the next port. Things can get a little stale here on the ship so when we stopped I’ll let everyone off to have some fun- lord knows some mammals need it.”

After explaining the day Wilde made his way up to the sterncastle and relieved the crewmate that was steering at the time. Pulling out a map and compass- and remembering where they’ve been- he plotted a course for Portugal as they were only a few days out. Setting the ship to go due east Wilde “locked” in the wheel and went about his day.

_____

The sun faded behind the horizon as crew light lanterns and hung them around. Sly and Lucky had decided that they needed a good night’s rest so they headed off to bed, leaving Shadow on his own. The red wolf sat on the edge of the ship as he looked around to see if he spotted anyone. Not seeing anyone around, Shadow lifted his sleeve to reveal the watch and tapped the face. An interface came up and there were many data points displayed as well as a timeline, he sighed, “no anomalies so far… that's good, and there doesn't seem to be any divergence from the original timeline… wait,” he zoomed in on the timeline to see certain dates shift as one was added, “damn it… I was wondering when their kidnapping would come up.” The added event didn't seem to change much other than being there, “well… that's a relief.” He took another breath before waving off the screen and pushing his sleeve back up.

There was a shuffling noise which had Shadow spinning around to find the source: he didn't. That is before he noticed what looked like sand spill from behind some barrels. The wolf intently watched as the sand seem to gather itself from behind the barrels and cocked his head as Finnick came strolling from behind them, capping his pouch. 

Curious, Shadow stood up and walked over, “hey, Finnick!” He called out.

The fennec fox shifted the see the mammal approaching him and sighed, “what is it you want?” He gruffly spoke.

“Well I _thought_ I saw some sand being spilled around here, but now I can't seem to find it,” the small fox tensed up ever so slightly, “and since you’re one of the only other people up right now I was wondering: did you clean it up?”

The fox started twitching in place, “I… no I didn't see anything. It must’ve been your imagination.”

The wolf scratched his head, “yeah, you’re probably right… but out of curiosity… what's in that pouch of yours?”

This seems to rile up the fox, “listen, I don't know what you’re insinuating but, I don't know what you’re talking about, so leave me alone.”

“I don't mean any disrespect Finnick but-”

“But nothin’,” the fennec threw himself up and gripped the collar of the wolf’s shirt with both paws, inches from his face, “when I say I don't know then I _don't know, so **back off!**_ ” Finnick dropped back to the ground and stormed away.

Momentarily stunned, Shadow shook himself as he frowned, “what are you hiding little fox?”

_____

The room was pit black other than the moonlight that shone through the windows. The soft breathing patterns of the red fox inside were interrupted by the sound of the door opening and softly, but no less forcefully, shut. His ears twitched as the sound of shuffling clothes filled the quiet and a mass pushed its way between his arms, “...Fin?...”

“Don't… I don't wanna talk right now…”

“Hm… someone piss you off?”

“I just said I didn't want to talk…… but yeah.”

“Okay… I’ll ask you in the morning… love you…”

“Yeah… love you too…” Was the last words spoken as both foxes fell into the comfort of sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay, some Nick and Fin action! Well... not that kind of action, but you get what I mean. And when it comes to relationships I know absolutely _nothing_ from personal experience, so I hope none of them seem... off. Though I am using them to pay off in the future for- in my eyes- needed conflict. Also sorry if this one felt a bit short, I think you'll find the next chapter... a tad longer than normal.
> 
> And moving on... What _is_ Finnick hiding? Well, we'll find out soon enough!
> 
> Tell me your thoughts: what you think of the story, what you think might happen, and if you have any questions, ask me and I'll see if I can answer them without ruining anything!
> 
> That's all I have to say for now, so I'll see you guys August 4th!


	8. 7- Encounters with Demons

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How's it going everyone? Good? Good. I'm great because we past _500 hits_ , and that's amazing! Thank you all so much for checking out my writing and I hope you'll stick around 'till the end as well as other projects I have for the future- like Outer Demons, which the first chapter is up. pop over and read it if you haven't already. After this of course.
> 
> Now I have a special treat for you all: A chapter almost over _6,000 words!_ Isn't that exciting?!  
>  There's a lot of meat here, and I hope you all enjoy it. Now don't get too comfortable with this as only important chapters, in my eyes anyway, will have this kind of length. You'll get more of these in time... (From my P.O.V. sooner than expected since I've got things going on later)
> 
> As always, mistakes you see point them out and I'll fix them!
> 
> Now enough of this, let's get right into it!

The Sovereignty of Portugal was _beautiful_ during the summer months and this year was no exception. The water clear and the beach clean and soft, and the buildings just stunning. The natural rock is only accented by the simple yet elegant clay homes and shops with their striking red clay roofs.

As _The Jolly Arrow_ was docked and the crew disembarked, Wilde and his main possi- along with Shadow, Lucky, and Sly- walked through the streets to, as Wilde put it, “meet up with an old friend”.

Though the structures were built for larger mammals, like Bogo and Clawhauser, most of the inhabitants were Shadow’s size or smaller- though that isn’t saying much. The only mammals here Shadow’s height were the Iberian wolves that were walking around while everyone else was foxes and hares- of the Iberian subspecies-, badgers and otters, and the extra small mammals of black rats, wood mice, and Iberian moles. Most were careful to not accidentally step on any of the local, but the longer they walked the harder it was to pay attention. Fortunately, the captain finally stopped in front of a general store of tan colouring.

Inside of the establishment were shelves with a variety of foods along with other essentials like gun ware, building supplies, and whatever else. At the counter was an older Iberian wolf with bronze eyes who flicked an ear when he heard the jingle of the doorbell.

He whipped towards the sound and had the biggest smile imaginable, “Wilde, tem sido assim por muito tempo! Como você está?” _**Wilde, it’s been so long! How are you?**_

The fox beamed as he strutted over, “Eu tenho feito muito bem Victor, como sobre você? São os gêmeos ainda um punhado?” _**I’ve been doing just fine Victor, how about you? Are the twins still a handful?**_

“Bah! Todos os dias eu sinto como se eu tenho menos e menos pêlos por causa daqueles dois... mas eu não iria usá-los para o mundo.” _**Bah! Everyday I feel like I have less and less fur because of those two... but I wouldn’t trade them for the world.**_

The two mammals hugged as the wolf, presumably Victor, seem to eye the newest three with curiosity, “Wilde, new crewmates?” The wolf spat out through his thick accent. He kept bouncing between Sly and Wilde, “Irmão?” _**Brother?**_

Wilde shook his head as he called over the three, “Victor, I would like to introduce you to Shadow, Lucky, and Sly. They’ve been travelling with us for only a short while. Guys, this is Victor Ferreira- the owner of this General’s store. I’ve known this man for almost as long as I’ve been on the sea.” The three greeted the man best they could as none of them spoke Portuguese, but the wolf understood.

He then proceeded to smack Wilde on the back of the head, “Idiota, por que você não vem visitar mais frequentemente? Gêmeos Senhorita Uncle Nicholas..." _**Moron, why don’t you come visit more often? Twins miss Uncle Nicholas…**_

“I know Victor I’ve just been busy is all.”

“Bah! Never too busy for family,” Victor preached as he seems to finally acknowledge the other mammals in the room, “Cornélio! Benny! Finnick! Come come, you have much to tell!” They sauntered over as Wilde helped Deserttail up onto the counter to give the Victor a hug, “Se você tratar este homem Finnick direito? Eu vou saber se você está mentindo…” _**You been treating this man right Finnick? I'll know if you're lying…**_

The fennec chuckled nervously as he played with his neck fur, “yeah old man, I’ve been doing Nicky right. You know I wouldn't hurt him…” he started blushing as he felt everyone’s eyes on him. Finnick didn't like “lookin’ soft”, as he puts it, in front of others, but he knew anything less would’ve had the Wolf on his tail about it.

Before Victor could say anything more Wilde cleared his throat, “as much as I would love to catch up right now, we do have a reason for being here.”

“Oh?” Victor sounded.

“We're going to be here for a few days, so we're taking the chance to restock- again- supplies for the ship and afterwards go see the sights.”

“Ah! I understand, how you say… ‘a night on the town’, yes?” The wolf asked.

Wilde laughed at the wolf’s attempt to speak more English even with his thick accent, “yes, Victor, that's exactly right. And, you know, you don't have to force yourself to speak English if you’re not comfortable with it.”

The wolf shook his head, “Prática- Practice. Mama said it’s rude to others who can't speak.”

Wilde nodded in understanding as he shrugged his shoulders, “makes sense… how is she by the way? Still as crazy as ever?”

His insistent talking got more smacks to the head.

_____

After their trip to Victor’s the group dropped off what was purchased and lounged around before heading back out.

They spent a good portion of the day just exploring the different shops and seeing all the different sights. Clawhauser, by accident, had offended a family of mice since his Portuguese wasn't the best. The captain was frantically explaining to the father that Ben wasn't calling his daughters ugly and to not gut the cheetah alive. Suffice to say, the day was interesting.

The golden rays of the setting sun kissed the landscape as the group headed to what the captain called “the most delectable cuisine you will ever experience!”. Wilde could be eccentric at times, but even if most of them were sceptical- other than Benjamin of course- that didn't stop them from following their captain. As they weaved their way through the crowds, as it seemed Portugal had a busy nightlife, Nicholas came to a stop after walking about six blocks.

The eight mammals were standing in a back alley in front of a steel door… nothing else. The others were lost as Wilde quite forcefully against the barrier.

_Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!_

The rectangular slit in the door slid open showing a set of hazel eyes, “que mans os mares como navegar?” _**Who mans the seas as we sail?**_ Came a gruff voice from behind the door, one very reminiscent of Finnick.

Wilde cleared his throat, “a Captain may manoeuvre their ship, but it is ultimately the waters that guide their journey and Poseidon who beckons safe passage.”

The mammal stared for a few moments before slamming the slit closed, more moments passed as the sound of locks flipping open and the door swung open to reveal a mole standing on a pedestal, “been a long time Wilde, for a moment I thought the seas finally claimed you… or you made a bad gamble with a large one,” the mammal’s deep, reverberating voice punched through the others reeled as they tried to comprehend how such a big voice- one bigger than Fin’s- could come from someone so small.

The fox just smirked as he beckoned everyone to follow, “it’ll take more to put down this old sea dog!”

“Tsk, you’re not even thirty yet… Idiota…” The others were very intrigued by how the mole had such a smooth English speaking voice while seemingly still having the thick accents of the natives here. Their questions and concerns died on their lips as they took in their surroundings.

Stalactites lined the roof of this cave looking establishment as torches gave the dining room an amber glow that was pleasing to both prey and more nocturnal predators; The tables were weathered oak, tying in the rest of the atmosphere. It was _gorgeous!_

Wilde took a deep breath and sighed with content as he spun to face the group, “Welcome to _Beijo da Terra_ , which translates to ‘Kiss of the Land’. This place is owned by a family of hares and I’ve gone to the other eateries around here- which are all very good-, but there's just something about this place… whatever they do it makes everything they cook _heavenly_.” Throughout his whole introduction, Benjamin continued to cup his face more and more to the point that his squeal started causing some of the other patrons some discomfort.

With one _very red_ cheetah, Wilde and his crew sat down at one of the weathered large group tables as they waited for someone to come by. The wait wasn't long, however, as a heavy-set doe came by, “Olá, Bem-vindo ao beijo da Terra, não muitos mamíferos saber sobre…” She began her rehearsed introduction until the word fell out of her mouth as she saw the fox with emerald eyes grinning at her with excitement.

“Francesca! Look how much you’ve grown! And I mean that in more than one way-”

_SLAP!_

The sound echoed so much that the pain could be felt in other mammals.

The russet fox was left with a stinging cheek and momentarily stunned before smirking smugly as he rubbed the sore spot, “Yep… I deserved that.”

“You’re damn right you did! That silver tongue is going to get you killed one day… or at the very least drive the women away from your furry ass,” the woman puffed out her chest as she berated the captain, “Nicholas I swear… you are the most _idiotic_ fox that I have _ever had_ the pleasure of meeting.”

“Ah, but you still admit that I’m a pleasure that so sweet.”

The doe rolled her eyes as she pulled the captain into a tight hug, “It's good to see you primo.”

He returned the hug with gusto, “I know, it's always good to see me!” The doe slapped, albeit much softer, again as she scoffed at him. 

Shaking her head, Francesca stood there hands on hips as she eyed the vulpine, “What have you been up to Wilde? You still captain of that janky ship?”

A gasp escaped Wilde’s muzzle as he guarded his heart, “ _How dare you!_ The Jolly Arrow is the finest vessel I have ever had the pleasure of captaining!”

“It's the only ship you’ve ever captained.”

One beat, “That doesn't make my statement any less true.”

“That ego is also going to drive the maidens away,” the hare pointed out as she went around and gave the others, that she knew, hugs as well. Wilde introduced the newest three as Francesca came back around to his end of the table.

“I’ll have you know that my charm has already taken hold of someone… and he’s _plenty happy_ with my ego,” he proclaimed as he eyed the now irritated fennec fox. The doe’s eyes grew as she clicked her tongue, “Really? O feneco?”

“The fennec exactly.” 

“Well… that _is_ something different, but we’ll talk about that later I still have a job to do- what’re all having?”

_____

After ordering the crew got into conversations about whatever came up: slacking crew members, the places they’ve been, childhood stories, becoming pirates, and some of the adventures they’ve had. Shadow was speaking rather animated as he regaled everyone in one of his own adventures, “So there I was, bleeding out with my sword in my paw and completely surrounded when it occurred to me: the sun was about to rise… as long as I kept them distracted then I could gain the upper hand.”

“What did you do?” Lucky asked on the edge of her seat and trembling with anticipation.

Shadow grinned, “What Nicholas does best: talk,” the whole table erupted into laughter as he continued to relay his story, “It's true! Some mammals believe if they’ve ‘won’ then they’ll regale with the defeated… for about two hours. Since some mammal’s compulsion to monologue, I watched as the sun rose above the horizon. I held up my paw and said, ‘well this has been a real treat, but unfortunately I must depart!’. It caught most of them off guard and when the leader asked, ‘and where are you going?’”

“And what did you say?” Finnick inquired, not believing anything the wolf was saying.

“I raised my sword and said, ‘Home.’ as I twisted the blade and watched as the sunlight reflected into all of their eyes. They were flabbergasted! I took their momentary blindness to tear my shirt and tie it around my waist and continued to fight; It was all over within the span of a few minutes. I felt myself growing weaker and weaker, but before I passed I my brother with my team arrived and I uttered, ‘what took you so long?’ before face-planting into the snow.”

Shadow finished his story with a series of cheers from around the table ad he stood and bowed. Once he took his seat again, Francesca returned with all of their dishes, “Arroz de Tamboril for O capitão, Caldeirada de Enguias for Seu amante foxy, Polvo à Lagareiro for Sombra, Sly, e o gato volumosos, and Salada de Bacalhau com Grão for Os coelhos e o búfalo de água!” She finally came up for air after making her way around the table with the varying sized dishes, served their food, nodded, then headed off.

The storytelling came to a momentary halt as their mouths watered and they dug into their meals…they were _exquisite!_

For Wilde, the monkfish and shrimp were cut beautifully into spoonful portions and the semi-sweet flavour clashed wonderfully with the savoury seasoned tomato broth it was served in. The rice and onions added a gritty texture that complimented the smooth broth while the chillies and peppers added a welcome kick that ties everything together.

For Finnick, the eels in his dish were firm and had a slightly sweet taste to them as it wasn't overly tough, but held a nice chew. The sauce was made out of a mixture of onions, potatoes, and tomatoes that were alternated and cooked along with olive oil garlic and parsley that created its own wondrous broth that pair well with the eel. Finnick’s eyes were rolling to the back of his head in delight, “now _this_ is the good shit…”

Shadow, Sly, and Benjamin all relished in their perfectly grilled octopus and their batatas a murro, or punched potatoes, as it was accented with some garlic and a drizzle of seasoned olive oil. A simple dish, but nonetheless delicious.

The does and buffalo, being more herbivorous, dove into their bowls of chickpeas tossed in chopped olives, onions, and mix of mayo as it was dressed in olive oil and parsley. The three mammals ordered their salads without for obvious reason, but that didn't deter from the detectability of the dish.

Wilde was right.

As everyone came down from their foodgasms they resumed their conversations with no other interruptions.

Shadow caught a glimpse of Wilde as he fed Finnick a bite of his food and watched as the fennec chewed, smiled, then glanced around- not seeing the wolf looking on- before giving Nicholas a peck on the cheek. The young wolf smirked at the quick sign of affection, _‘Deserttail: mask of stone, heart of gold,’_ Shadow geely thought as he went back to eating and hearing the little traide from Hopps’ past.

_____

The previous night concluded with full stomachs and happy muzzles. Franchesca made Wilde promise to come by again he ever was in the water near, which Nicholas wholeheartedly agreed to only if he got to eat that wondrous food again.

It was the next morning and Shadow want to “practice” with Sly and Lucky, so he guided him through the city they were in until they ended up in a field, Sly whistled, “wow… where’d you find this?”

“Got up real early today and went to see if I could find somewhere where we wouldn't be bothered; Magicians aren’t common, so if we could avoid conflict with the locals then that would’ve been ideal- luckily enough here we _can_ avoid conflict,” Shadow clapped his paws together as he scanned the landscape, “I wanted to get you two more used to the magic here; Your reserves already adjust for the most part, but I want them fully accustomed to the way they’re channeled here.” He set down the satchel that he brought with him and emptied its contents: books, “I want the two of you to read these books and try out a few of their spells, once you think you've gotten a handle on them then we’ll move on to something harder. Sound good?” The red wolf asked, getting a nod of confirmation for both doe and tod.

“Alright then, let's get to work!”

_____

They had spent the entirety of the day practising various spells and how to cast them properly. Sly had an intricate light cyan circle glowing underneath him as his movements were rigged and stiff as he sent a cascade of ice barreling in front of him as it towered over the land. Lucky had similar markings of red on the back of her paws, which allowed her to summon fire with ease. She mixed in flips and spins to spread the fire more effectively, but Sly believes it makes her look cool.

Either way, the rabbit and fox made tremendous progress and because of this Shadow is very pleased with this, “Well done you two! The both of you seem to be getting the hang of this, I am very impressed.”

“Well you should be,” Sly retorted as he shook out the excess frost that formed in his fur, “reading from a book is easy, but we only understand it because of everything you showed us.”

“Yeah! You’ve been a great teacher since you introduced us to all of these _wonderful places!_ You’ve shown us things we didn't even believe were possible,” Lucky held her palms up as a puff of fire bloomed in both, “and now we can do things like this… thank you Shadow, from the bottom of our hearts.”

The red wolf’s dark fur hid the blush that was forming underneath, “W-Well of course! Training you two to be Guardians these last two years has been a blast…” the smile that crossed his face began to fade into a frown as he looked away.

Lucky caught this, “What’s wrong?”

“Someone… Someone’s here,” Shadow took out a few metal bats- like the one used from the first day- out and expertly tossed them towards the treeline embedding them in the outermost trees, “show yourself! You keep hiding and I promise you this won’t go your way!”

“With you throwing metal at I would certainly hope that it goes my way!”

The familiar voice cause the wolf some confusion, “Captain?”

“And the others as well,” he stated, walking out into the open along with Bogo, Clawhauser, Finnick, Wolford, and Hopps. The captain whistled, looking at the trees, “well that explains who cut us free. What are these anyway?” He questioned, pulling one of the metal bats out of a tree to examine it.

Shadow rubbed the back of the neck as he tried to come up with a plausible excuse, “They’re… throwing knives! They’re throwing knives that I made myself… nothing but metal and sharp, so be careful.”

“The craftsmanship of these are impeccable! You seem to have a knack for metalwork,” Wilde praised as he handed back the bat in his hand, “especially since this cut through six nooses with ease.”

“Thank you! I take pride in the things I create,” boasted Shadow as he tucked it back inside his coat, and that's when he noticed the bareness of Wilde’s head other than the black scarf tied around his head, “Where’s your hat?”

“Huh? Oh, I left it on the ship. I didn't really feel the need to wear it since the sun's setting… so, I see you and your charges are practising your wizarding,” he stated gesturing the burnt patches of grass and towers of ice, “though I only see two signs of distress… what have you been up to Shadow?”

“Training these two of course! Some of these spells in here,” he held up a grimoire, “they don't know, so I’ve been having them get used to the bigger spells since the bigger the spell the more of our reserves are spent.”

“Really? Well, you’ll have to tell us more about that- Cornelius, Wolford! Set up camp!”

“Yes, Captain!” Shouted the buffalo and wolf as they set down the packs they had and unpacked.

The red wolf seemed confused by this order, “There's no need to keep us company it's-”

“Nonsense!” The pirate captain slapped the lower back of the bigger mammal, “I’ve always found Magicians intriguing, but I’ve never had one to ask experience. It’ll be interesting!”

_____

“So you’ve only been magic training for two years?” Inquired Finnick as he stared in awe at the fox and rabbit of gold and ruby eyes, “Aren’t you, you know, supposed to train for most of your childhood? I read that in one of the books in Wilde’s room and- wait?” The rest of the crew stared at him curiously, “Why you all lookin’ at me like that? Yes, I read, come off it!” The group chuckled at the frustrated fox.

Lucky composed herself before answering, “Normally yes, but Sly and I started late. Luckily enough we had a wonderful teacher, so it was easy to pick up quickly.”

“Still though…” Finnick seems to lose himself to his thoughts as his frown deepened. Shadow suspicions from before began flaring… he needed to test his theory.

“Well if you excuse me,” started the wolf as he dusted himself off, “I have something to take care of, Sly if you will come with me.” The tod nodded as he mimicked the other’s actions and trailed him, “we’ll be right back.”

As Shadow and Sly faded into the treeline Hopps took this opportunity to delve into the other bunny. She gathered everyone’s attention before scooting closer to Lucky, “So… what's the deal between you and Sly huh?”

Lucky’s face began to glow red as she was completely caught off guard by the sudden question, “W-What? What do you mean?”

“I mean are you two… you know…”

A few beats before it finally clicked what Hopps was insinuating, “Wha- Oh my jeez! No! There’s nothing going on between Sly and I!”

“Hey, there's no shame if there is,” Hopps’ smug look wasn't making the situation any more comfortable for the other doe, “I asked Sly a while back and he gave me a similar answer… I just wanted to get your perspective is all.”

“Well,” Lucky finally was able to compose herself, “there you have it: Sly probably told you we were _just friends_ and that's what we are… that's what we’ve always been.”

“Do you want more?”

“Well… it's complicated. Unless there's-”

“‘Something _really definitive_ that shows us we can be together then we’ll get together’, and until then you’re just friends, right?”

“Sly already told you that?”

“Yep,” Hopps dejectedly said, “man… I was hoping that was just the tod being scared to tell you how he felt.”

“Well, I can tell you right now that Sly is not-” her words were cut off as she flicked her ears behind her, Hopps doing the same.

The other mammals noticed this and waited… and waited… and waited… until Wilde’s eyes shot up to see many sharp black tendrils burst from the treeline- on the other end of the field- and barrel straight towards them. None of them had any time to react in order to dodge… luckily that didn't have to.

As the dark spike came within range they were all hazardly deflected in other directions as a huge white magic circle shielded them. The crew were stunned as they heard ruffling behind them and saw Shadow and Sly appear, the latter fists closed and arms forming an “X” in front of him, “Well good thing we came back when we did.” He manipulated the shielding as more tendrils tried to move around, but ultimately blocked by Shadow’s fierce reflexes. He broke the “X”, which caused the shield to shatter and destroy any spike still in the area.

Shadow centred himself before shouting, “Come on out Clanweaver, I know you’re out there!” And watching the other members prepare to fight. The wolf’s order was answered as the burly Lion stepped out of the trees along with his other disciples.

“Shadow… So you are with them…” snarled the predator as he flexed his claws, “perfect… I a get to kill you and the other two when I take Loxless and Hightail with me.”

 _‘So he is talking about Hopps and Wilde… good thing I read up on the story the captain told me.’_ “You’re not taking anyone Michael, and you’re certainly not killing me today. I can make sure of that!”

“Oh really?” The other hooded mammals basically floated their way around and blocked off any back way of leaving, “I’m curious to see you try to stop me!”

“Well then,” Wilde and them watched as Shadow unsheathed a wide broadsword- coloured black and red- from one of the two scabbards on his back, “let's see you try- and I’ll tell you right now that I’m not an easy mammal to kill. Sly! Lucky!”

The other fox and rabbit pulled out a sword and bo staff respectively while they both flexed a paw to summon their respective elements of ice and fire, “You two ready?”

“Always,” resonated the two.

“Perfect- Captain, do you think you can handle the little fish?” Called out shadow about the hooded mammals.

Wilde brought out his own sword and readied to fight, “six pirates against six cultish magicians… piece of cake.”

_____

It was not a piece of cake.

Granted he and his crew were fighting large mammals with magic, so it is understandable to have some sort of difficulty with the situation.

At the moment Wilde was rolling out of the way of a giant black hand that was determined to smash him into fox paste, but The Captain had other plans.

The mammal he was squaring off with was a tiger and even though she was a cat she didn't seem that nimble the first few times Wilde got in close, so Wilde thought he could use that.

At the corner of his eyes he could see his crew having various amounts of difficulty with their own opponents, but seem to be holding on their own which brought a smile to his face.

After another failed smashing he rolled in towards the tiger, which caught the tigress off guard, and while she seems to be fumbling with her casting Wilde took the chance and sliced her lag and when she came down he launched up and kicked her across the face, knocking her out cold.

Panting trying to recover his breath, Nicholas looked on as the rest of his crew were still fighting as he caught a glimpse of what was happening with Shadow and the others, _‘be careful you three,’_ he thought before going to help his crew.

_____

Michael wasn't making it easy for them, but they weren't making it any easier for him either.

As shadows tried to engulf and impale the three mammals, Shadow, Sly and Lucky burned fire; casted light; and summoned ice in trying to protect themselves as well as get any closer to Michael… but to no avail. Clanweaver set up trap spells that coated the ground, which has the three on guard for wherever they were landing as at any moment a tendril could spear them or a pair of teeth could try to rip them in half.

Needless to say that The Shadow Caster is a formidable foe that actually knew what he was doing.

Sly was in the process of flipping backwards as he had just landed on a trap spell that targeted him for many spikes to converge on him, fortunately, he managed to encase them in ice with the flick of his wrist before blasting himself a path to slide on.

Lucky saw what he was trying to do- make it around Michael- so she tried to catch the lion’s attention, “Hey!”

Her screamed cause the lion to turn to her just in time to see a torrent of flame rockets towards him. He expended some shielding in blocking the fire not noticing the vulpine that ended up behind him and summoned an ice pillar underneath him. Clanweaver went flying as he tried to regain control before tumbling hard into the ground once again. Sly threw up a thumbs up at his partner while the two watched as Shadow formed to light whips and bound the lion’s arms, “Maybe if you weren't so easily distracted you would’ve noticed my friend there,” the red wolf smugly stated.

Hoping for a frustrated growl, what he didn't expect was a deep-throated laugh as Michael started flexing his arms and straining the light binds, “Light magic may be my weakness…” the binds shattered as he thrust forward and capturing Shadow in a cascade of darkness, “but someone as weak as you wouldn’t be able to hold me with that pathetic display!” With one fluid motion, SHadow was tossed through the air at breakneck speed as he decimated the trees he went flying through. In his moment of pause Sly took a shadow spike through the shoulder, his cries of anguish startling Lucky out of her trance.

“SLY!” Was all she managed to get out before a familiar tendril quickly began wrapping around her neck and cutting off the flow of oxygen. Her struggled gasps filled the air as she managed to catch Sly being tossed away in the same manner as Shadow with her following suit.

This wasn't good.

Wild and his crew took care of the other Magicians just in time to see the three of them thrown through the air like nothing. They sprinted over to their sides as Michael chortled, “What a pathetic attempt! Did you _really think_ you could win against me? Your magic is weak, unformed, and in dire need of improvement… this was never going to go your way.” Black markings lined the ground behind the predator as a wall of spikes rocked back and forth, “And once I kill you and your _pets_ then I can take what I want…” He snarled while eyeing both Hopps and The Captain.

What nobody expected, however, was Shadow to be… laughing?

“Heh… You’re right, this wasn't going to result in our win. It never was.”

“Then why fight mutt?”

“Well,” groaning as he stood up he resituated his stance and let a smirk on his face, “I only really need to know how powerful you were… And I have to say I am _very impressed_ … but that's all I needed to know.”

He nodded to Sly and Lucky as they mimicked his movement of balling their paws and aiming them towards the ground- and during that time Shadow caught a glimpse at exactly what he wants to see. Michael tried preventing whatever they were doing but was stunned when tendrils went cascading away from the translucent shielding around them. Underneath all of the mammals is a large intricate white casting circle that glowed bright, “We have just enough strength to cast this, and I’m looking forward to seeing your face when we leave.”

The lion growled, “A transport spell…”

“Right! All I need is an object from one of the mammals within the circle- for example, a captain’s hat- to be where I need to go. And since The Jolly Arrow is already set sail and away from here-”

“WHAT?!”

“Sly does a really good impression of you Captain. Now… Clanweaver this was fun, but now we must depart. Tootals!”

“NO!” The lion roared as he attacked the shielding to no avail and watched as the crew of The Jolly Arrow disappear in a flash of light.

_____

The crew aboard The Jolly Arrow listened to the crashing waves again the hull of the ship in wonderment as to why the captain wanted them to set sail without him and a few others.

Their questions were answered by a blinding light and the sound of falling mammals hitting the wooden surface.

Wilde and them groaned as they pushed themselves off the deck and stood up. A few members- a pig, tiger, bear, and two sheep- came to the aid of Shadow, Sly and Lucky and treated their injuries.

Wilde looked baffled as to what just happened, “You… You had Sly impersonate me and had the ship take off, so we had an escape.”

“Yep, I did.”

“Did you know we were going to be attacked?”

“Honestly? No. I just wanted to test out the spell to see if it would work, luckily it did or we would’ve been in major shit…” Those three mammals, in particular, were wobbling and lightheaded as they tried to stand, “It was a powerful spell, one that could’ve taken all nine of us, and after fighting for forever we're… a little drained.”

Everyone was chuckling at how light-hearted he was treating the situation.

Hopps broke the laughter, “Who was that anyway?”

“That,” Sly began, “was Michael Clanweaver and he is the one that kidnapped me and Lucky while on Camele Isle.”

“What? But I thought-” 

“An orchestrated ruse that the three of us concocted to throw you off the scent. What really happened was that Tall, Dark, and Evil took me and Lucky thinking we were you two. He wasn't really happy when he found out we weren't.”

“But why is he after us?” Asked the Captain, “He isn't anyone I recognize and mammals don't attack for no reason.”

“It's complicated,” Shadow leaned against the ship’s railing, “and we’ll discuss that later… now, however, some things need to be addressed.”

The deck fell silent as the wolf took a deep breath before continuing, “ the transporter spell we used had specific conditions that had to be met in order to cast it: One- it required an object from someone from the group to be where they wanted to go, and Two- the number of Magicians needed to cast changes depending on the distance of Point A to Point B. From what I calculated from where we were and where the ship would’ve been at the time of casting… we needed **four** Magicians to cast, not three.”

“Someone here is secretly a Magician… and I believe I know who. Or!” The red wolf suddenly switched gears in his mannerisms, “I could’ve overestimated and we only needed three magic users to cast the spell. Either possibility could be right,” Shadow hobbled over to Wilde when he caught a familiar figure trying to walk away.

He pulled what looked like a spellbook from his jacket and began flipping through the pages, a curious look on his muzzle. After a bit, he placed a digit under his chin, “what do you guys think roasted fox smells like?” Everyone was horrified by the question. He shrugged, “I don't know either… why don't we find out,” he finished as a red circle formed in front of the figure, and the whirlwind engulfed the fennec.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **[Seu amante foxy = his foxy lover**   
>  **Sombra, Sly, e o gato volumosos = Shadow, Sly, and the bulky cat**   
>  **Os coelhos e o búfalo de água = the rabbit and water buffalo]**
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> What the fuck Shadow?! Why'd you do that?! Oh, wait... because I made him.
> 
> But before that, what'd you all think? A trip to Portugal (Very Non-specific in the sense of an actual town of some sort), Visit with the locals and some eating wonderful food, Some magic training, and Interference from Michael: What more could you ask for?
> 
> A lot, you could ask for a lot... but I hope you're enjoying what I'm doing so far.
> 
> Comment if you like, and if you have any questions for me don't be afraid to ask and I'll see if I can answer!  
> See you all next week!


	9. 8- Secrets Revealed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey hey hey! What's goin' peoples?
> 
> I'll keep this short, so I want to thank you all for checking this story out, I really do appreciate it!
> 
> After this maybe you might check out my newest story _Launchpad: The Mask we Wear_ ; it's Ducktales, but who knows, maybe you'll take a liking to it.
> 
> And as always if you see any errors tell me and I'll fix them, and so without further ado let's get right into the next chapter of Swords and Sorcerers!

“ _WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!_ ”

Nicholas couldn't believe what he was seeing: someone he might’ve considered a friend started burning the love of his life alive. He couldn't believe it.

Rage burned in his chest as he went to attack the wolf when he turned and looked… pleased? But why?

The traitor smirked, “do you _hear_ any screaming? No? Well, it might be because of _that_ ,” he punctuated by dissolving his spell and within the flames was… a stone dome. As the fire faded away, surprisingly not torching the wooden deck, everyone stared in anticipations as the dome began crumbling into dust and sand to reveal the unscathed fennec fox with one paw on the open pouch and the other raised in a relaxed fist… with an intricate glowing beige circle on the back.

Finnick’s eyes flared with hate as Shadow just smirked while putting his book away, “I knew it.”

Finnick flexed his digits as he tossed his paw in Shadow’s direction and clenched, and as if the sand was alive itself it slithered across the ground and wrapped around the body of the wolf. Crossing both arms in front of his chest- another marking appearing- as he approached the crew of the ship were shocked as the sand began to harden and tighten, bringing the attacker to his knees.

The fennec’s nostrils flared, “You got some _fuckin’_ nerve to attack me like that! What the hell did you think was-”

“Fin?”

The sound of Wilde’s voice shook the small fox as he panned up to see the amber tod look at him in confusion, “What… I don't… I don't understand,” he tried to get out more but couldn't seem to find the right words. 

The fennec was shocked: he didn't know what to do. He stood there for a few moments before finally sighing, lowering his arms, and relaxing his body. The stone snake around Shadow crumbled into dust allowing the wolf to stretch and stand back up. Before that, however, he took a bit of the sand and examined it: it had a light brown colour to it, reminiscent of beach sand, but had mixtures of creme and yellowing in it while also feeling more firm, “There's granite mixed into this… when hardened this could result in some tough stuff. I’m impressed.”

“Yeah yeah, whateva’,” the small fox flicked his paw and the sand began funnelling back into the pouch before he shut the cap. The sound of waves were the only things keeping it from being completely silent. 

“How long?” Everyone jumped at the sound of Nicholas’ voice, but there was something… off about it. Gone were his usual jovial tones, replaced by words coated in ice. 

“N-Nicky wait-”

“Don't you ‘Nicky’ me _Deserttail_ ,” Wilde spat out completely disregarding the pet name Finnick used, “ _ **Answer me:** How. Long._ ”

The large-eared fox tried spitting out an answer, but under the hard gaze, he had never seen from Wilde before all that came out was a stuttering mess.

Once he was able to get the hang of himself he found the floor interesting, “S…. Since I was ten…”

He spoke so low that no one heard him, especially a now irritated Wilde, “what was that?”

Finnick hated this.

“Since I was ten alright?! Happy?!”

One Beat… Two Beats… Three-

‘Since you were _TEN?!_ ” Nicholas started shouting, “Finnick, we’ve known each other all our lives… and you’re _JUST NOW_ saying that you’ve been a Magician for _21 years?!?!_ ”

Everyone flinched as no one had actually heard Captain Wilde yell. He’s raised his voice before but never shouted out of anger. It was a new experience… and it was _terrifying!_

Finnick, most of all, had no clue on how to handle this since he’s the one Nicholas is mad at… and it takes a lot, but he was scared.

The unbridled rage blanketed Wilde’s once shining emerald eyes that almost left them unrecognizable, and it only worsened the longer this went on, “Deserttail you’re telling me that for 21 years, and for half of that since we got together, that you’ve been able to use magic and you never told me?!”

“There wasn't-”

“ _Shut your **goddamn mouth!**_ ” For the first time in his life… Finnick stepped back.

Nicholas Piberius Wilde was Fire and Brimstone, and the world just faded away, “I _loved_ you Fin, but even then you didn't even take a chance to- wait,” the fury in his body shifted to confusion for a brief moment, “You never used it… all these years together, romantically or not, you _never_ used your magic,” the anger came back full force as he clenched his shirt in his paw that he began ripping holes in it, “the attacks… the near-death experiences… the attempts on me… you never used it to protect the crew… to protect _me!_ You didn't do anything…” His tears burned full force, “my body is _damaged, broken_ because you couldn't even be **bothered** to do anything about it.”

“N-Nick-” 

“You _wanted_ it, didn't you? You _wanted_ me to get hurt…”

“N-No! Never! I never wanted that!”

“Then why didn't you ever use your magic?!”

“Y-... You saw how limited-”

“ _I DON'T WANT ANY OF YOUR EXCUSES?!_ ”

The entire time Wilde marched toward Finnick, and no matter how fast he moved back Nicholas managed to grab him by the shirt and jerked him up into the air, “TELL ME WHY?!”

Eyes wide with fear and tears Finnick stuttered out an answer, “I-I… t-the sand in m-my pouch is all I have when I-I’m on-”

“The ship, yes I know that now, but you still didn't use it to shield me at _any points!_ And off the ship, what’s your excuse there?”

Check, “I… I… I d-don't have one…” Tears were freely down his face at this point and he didn't even care who could see… all that mattered was that Wilde is the one who caused them and he had every right.

“ _Exactly…_ ” The fennec slammed into the ground, hard, as Wilde let him go… and raised his fist.

Time. Stood. _Still._

Finnick only had a second before it came crashing down…

…

…

… and cracking the wood plank next to his head as Nicholas almost went through it.

The Captain pulled back for Finnick to clearly see the indent he created as well as the splinters, cuts and blood that was Wilde’s paw. His breathing was heavy as he panted through his nose, “As _much as I want_ to beat you unconscious… I can’t. I can’t do it.” 

Even with all the pain filling the fox, something occurred to him, ”Even… Even as we were going to be executed you still did nothing… one would think that you wanted that too.”

Even through the tears, Finnick managed a growl, “N-No! I never wanted that!”

The emerald dulled and darkened, “I don’t believe you…” On the bloodied paw Wilde started fiddling with the rings and on the one on his third digit, with an awkward crack and stained in blood, he removed. One could almost see the colour drain from the fennec’s fur.

“You gave this to me after snatching it off an aristocrat. We made a promise when you gave it to me: We would be true to one another, We would never _**doubt**_ each other, And we would never _**lie**_ to each other…”

It felt as if the world was moving through tar: unbearably slow, but still could see the scene unfold.

He dropped the ring as if it burned him and the ship didn’t move a beat as metal hit wood in the most _deafening sound_ possible, “You _broke_ that promise…” With one last cold glare, Nicholas spun around and began to storm off.

Finnick frantically got to his feet and went after Wilde, “N-Nicky _please!_ D-Don’t do-“ he went to grab for Nicholas’s unhurt paw, only for his own to be uncomfortably snatched and squeezed.

“ _Don’t you **dare** touch me!_ ”

Shadow, worried the captain might hurt Finnick, stepped forward only to feel the ice cold paw of Sly. Looking down to see a mask firmly in place and a shaking head, only then did he step back. 

Wilde shoved Finnick back- for him to fall back on the ground- as he snarled, “‘Never let them see that they get to you’, that was what I lived by for so long and it was you who showed me that I didn’t have to hide how I felt… I guess you were _wrong_. Showing how I feel only leaves to pain…” he pinched the bridge of his snout, “I don’t want to see you… _ever_. If I’m around I want you to do your _damndest_ to avoid me, and if I see you anywhere _near_ my Quarters then I’m throwing you in the brig myself… Do I make myself clear Deserttail?”

“Y-... Y-Yes… Yes Captain…”

“Good.”

_____

Captain Wilde headed out of sight, and during the entire exchange, nobody moved a muscle. They had never seen the captain so… _hurt_ , so… _pained_ before… they had never seen him so _unforgiving_ before.

Sly and Lucky didn’t know what to _do_ , didn’t know what to _say_. The entire exchange was so _jarring_ to the two of them that they had basically _shut down_ mentally through it all. Sly was only on autopilot when he saw Shadow move, and only when the Captain finally left we're the two able to snap back to reality.

Just in time to see the fury of Finnick.

He had gone back to pick the ring up that was laying on the ground, and after a few minutes standing there silently, he started to growl, “You… You _**bastard…**_ ” never had anyone seen the fox move so fast before and nobody knew how fast a Magician could ensnare someone until right now. 

The stone slowly tightened around Shadow’s neck, “This… This is all your fucking fault! If it wasn’t for _you-_ “

“I-If it wasn’t for me… He still w-wouldn’t know…” The crew were surprised by how easily he could talk with the lack of air entering him, “s-someone you love is privy to something like that… keeping it from them for _s-so long_ breaks down trust… t-this isn’t anyone’s fault, but _yours…_ ”

Almost like a switch, the anger completely drained from the fennec’s face as he began to openly sob. His casting deteriorated as he collapsed to the ground.

Unmoving, the entire crew stared in disbelief as the fox that had been known for being gruff and angry openly _sob_ in front of everyone… and that hurt _everyone_. Wolford hadn’t closed his mouth since everything started, Bogo’s face was the softest anyone had ever seen, Clawhauser was blubbering during the whole ordeal and only started wailing once it ended, and Hopps… she walked over to the small fox in order to _try_ to comfort him and the moment she placed a paw on his back…

...he bit her.

Tugging her paw back she could see the small divots he left behind… and the blood that started trickling. Finnick got back to his feet and the murderous intent resonating from him sent a chill down her spine, “ _ **Don't touch me…**_ ” He glared at Lucky, “That goes for you too, and if I even see your fox around me… I’ll kill him…” Finnick muttered something about “looking too much like him” that only Shadow heard as the fennec made his way downstairs.

To say it was an eventful night would be an understatement.

_____

Four days.

For four days Wilde and Finnick hadn’t spoken to each other, well, not personally anyway. Over this time Finnick had gotten progressively worse in his attitude as he started lashing out at everyone around him, threatened to gut anyone who touched him, and cursed up a storm as he destroyed whatever he could get his hands on.

Wilde had brought down an iron fist around the fennec: giving him tasks that he couldn’t complete because of his size, chastising him for the smallest of mishaps, and shutting him out at any actual chance to try to talk. 

And the other crew members weren't any better. Nobody hated Finnick for what he was, but they hated him for what he did to the Captain. Everyone knew he had a relationship with the Captain and everyone knew how happy they made each other… but after what happened days ago everything they had _shattered_. Wilde always frowned, if he wasn't yelling at Finnick he was- even if marginally less- yelling at the other crew members and stopped smiling.

He was completely different… and it was all because of Finnick.

It also didn't help that both foxes respectively had alcohol on their breaths, always drunk. It was bothering Shadow.

Near the end of the fourth night, he had followed Finnick into the Crew’s Quarters, which was completely empty, as he saw a rum bottle much too big for his paws. Seeing Finnick jump into one of the hammicks and uncork the bottle Shadow grew increasingly worried as the fennec seemed determined to drink the whole bottle, _‘The thing’s double his size!’_ shouted scared thoughts as the wolf fully walked in and took the bottle from the small size. He didn't like that.

In an instant, a stone spike was held up to the canine’s throat, “Give it _back!_ ”

“No.”

“What?”

“I said ‘No’ Finnick I’m not giving the bottle back.”

“Tsk, what makes you think you have a choice?” The spike put more pressure on the wolf’s neck.

Steeling his expression, Shadow glared at the tiny mammal, “I know you’re not going to kill me…”

“Wanna bet?” The spike’s tip broke skin, a small trickle of blood running down the mammal’s skin.

Shadow steadied his breathing, “You won’t… Because my brother threatened me the same way you are now, and I know that you won’t do anything.”

“I am _not_ your brother…” He dove the spike further in, a small hole stretched in the wolf’s neck.

“M-My brother raised his claws at me… he was drunk and drowning in despair. He had lost _everything_ that mattered to him… after a while he turned his anger inward and started hating himself-”

The spike sank deeper.

“ _-and_ even with all that pain… he never hurt me. I did to him and had gotten the same reaction. He’d stopped caring… but that didn't mean _I did_.”

The spike stopped.

“I could’ve cared less i-if he clawed me… I was just _tired_ of seeing him hurt himself… I don't want to see you go down the same path because…"

The pressure on his neck lessened, “b-because I think if I don't step in now…"

The spike left his neck, “...I don't know if you’ll wake up tomorrow.”

All the anger that had filled the fox’s features drained away in an instant, Shadow continued, “My brother had a friend, his first friend, that opened his eyes. He showed him friendship, compassion, love… mercy. He did everything he could to show him how _wonderful_ the world is! Then… Then…” The deep red eyes of Shadow dulled, “He lost him… he was taken from this world and my brother couldn't do anything about it,” a fire burned once again as he watched the fennec, “He was _so determined_ to dull the pain in his heart at _any cost_ , and I just couldn't stand it to see him like that. You’re doing the same thing. And I don't care what you have to say about yourself: you _matter!_ You have _so much_ that you can do… and I’ll be damned if I see someone else try to destroy themselves!”

Huffing, Shadow finally noticed that there was no floating spike in front of him, but a pile of sand at his feet. Catching a glimpse of the fennec he saw newly renewed tears falling down his cheeks as growled, “God damn it!” He started pounding the wooden post with his fist repeatedly as he continued cursing, “God! Fucking! Damn it!” He punctuated every word with a strike before he slowed to a stop. The post had a dent and his fist was bloody, staining his fur orange.

Shadow pulled out some rags and wrapped the tiny fox’s hand up as he set down the bottle and got into the hammock with Finnick, “It hurts, doesn't it?”

“Yeah, I probably shoulda pounded the pillow.”

“I'm not talking about you paw.”

He wouldn't make eye contact with his uninvited guest, “It's him… it's always been him. Nobody else… just him.”

“You love him, don't you?”

“What kind of dumbass question is that?” Deserttail snapped, “Of course I love him! We’ve been through everything together!”

“Okay, I get it, sorry,” there was a lull that Shadow tried to fill with an incoming thought, “You want to be with him always. Marry him if you could.”

“Tsk… that ring was my sayin’ he was mine… fat lot good it did me…”

“Well… give it time. Wilde… Wilde’s not one to hate someone forever. He wouldn’t throw everything away over one mistake.”

“Oh yeah?” The fennec questioned, “And what would you know about Wilde?”

“Trust me… more than you know. What I'm trying to say is… you fucked up, there's no denying that, but doesn't mean you don't have another chance. It was a lot to process, you kept a huge secret from him so what did you expect? But that doesn't mean he doesn't still loves you… so give it time, and don't push it.”

As Shadow made his way out of the hammock and started to leave he heard Finnick say one last thing.

“He should’ve remembered…”

The wolf spun around, “What?”

“Nicky… he should’ve remembered…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What Finnick? What was Nick supposed remember?
> 
> I know, but want to see if y'all can figure it out. If you got theories or questions, tell me, I would love to see what you all think the story's heading!
> 
> Thank you to all of you... And I'll see you all on the 25th!


	10. 9- Doubts and Reconciliation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone, back again with another chapter of Swords and Sorcerers!
> 
> Just want to say thank you for all of you who check out my writing I really appreciate it- and if you want to read my other story, _Launchpad: The Mask we Wear_ , please feel free to! It's DuckTales, if you couldn't tell, and I've been having a blast writing it along with this story as well!
> 
> Now enough of that, let's get into the chapter! And as always, see any mistakes tell me and I'll get right to them!

It has been a week since Shadow and Finnick talked, and during that time the small fox had grown much kinder during that time. Granted he was still gruff and irritated all the time, but he was learning to smile more as well as not attack everyone in his path. Captain Wilde had noticed this, and even though he was still upset with the fennec he was glad to see him doing better than before.

Wilde, also, seemed to be much calmer than he was last week. While still skittish whenever Finnick was around the entire crew saw him slowly return to his sarcastic, jovial self. At times, however, he seemed like wasn't being completely upfront when he talked to others.

Sly, Lucky, and Shadow were glad to see things mostly return to normal here on _The Jolly Arrow_ , with some minor changes.

Though Finnick specialized in a certain type of element he still had the ability to manipulate others with some difficulty, so with this, he helped guide the winds and create smooth sailing conditions for everyone. As long as they didn't run into any storms then he assisted.

_____

Lucky made her way up to the sterncastle as it was Sly’s turn to “navigate the seas” as the captain put it. The red fox had on his forest green coat, brown leather pants, and cream colored shirt. He looked… dorky.

Said fox caught her staring, “You like what you see Cottontail?”

“Pfft, as if,” she walked over to see the map displayed, “So ‘Captain’ where are we heading?”

“Wilde has me plotting a course for a city over in North America.”

“Which one?”

“Take a guess,” the vulpine said while smirking.

The lapin pretended to think as there was only one logical choice. Her eyes warmed up, “Zootopia.”

“Yep! We're…” Trailing off to read the map, “... still five days out, but we're really close Fluff. You’re excited, aren’t you?”

“How can you tell?”

“Smile and you’re rocking the boat with those bunny feet of yours,” she was confused by his observations until she realized her foot was thumping up a storm.

She stopped, a blush filling her cheeks, “oh…”

Seeing Lucky flustered never failed to bring a smile to his face and a laugh to everyone else, “Heheh, it's okay Long Ears you didn't do anything wrong. What do you think it's like? Personally, I see wagons, large dresses, frilly shirts, and a smorgasbord of differently sized mammals! You never know who we’ll see!” Tossing his arms into the air Lucky got a chuckle out of how extra Sly was being.

“You’re so-”

“Handsome? Charming? Funny? A real lady killer?”

“I was _going_ to say ‘stupid’, but sure.”

He gripped his chest and pouted, “You wound me…” the punch to his arm made him smirk.

“Be serious.”

“I am! Are you suggesting that I’m _not_?”

“Hm… Do I believe you’re being over the top? Yes, yes I do.”

The two shared a laugh as Sly readjusted the wheel to keep it in place. They spent a good few hours on the sterncastle together: guessing the shapes of the clouds, laughing at each other’s jokes, and just watching the waves. They also discussed what it was like on a pirate ship and it wasn’t like anything they ever imagined, but that probably had something to do with how Captain Wilde ran The Jolly Arrow and his crew.

Lucky, right now, was doing a poor job at keeping a straight face at something her fox friend just said… and let the damn burst.

She roared with laughter as she doubled over and started rolling all over the place, which was quite amusing to the tod, “Oh come on Lucky even I can admit that one wasn't that funny. It's not even one of my originals!”

While gasping for air she managed to get something out, “I… I know… i-it's just the way you said it…” Her laughter tapered off to chuckles then to light smirking before she finally calmed down. Lucky enjoyed the time she spent with Sly… which had her think.

“Sly?”

“Yeah?”

“Do… Do you like traveling? Like this I mean.”

He thought for a moment, “Well I’ve never been on an actual pirate ship before so-”

“Sly! Seriously! I mean the traveling with Shadow…”

“Well… I don't know,” she wanted him to be honest after all, “whenever we go to other places we can see some _fantastic sights…_ or we could run into some pretty nasty people. It's like a double-edged sword: you never know what you’re going to get. But,” he reached over to hold her paw, “as long as you’re around things’ll be pretty interesting,” he ended with a genuine smile.

Lucky’s face began to heat up fast.

“You’re like a Danger Magnet! Trouble always finds us with you around!”

“Sly!”

_____

It was dusk aboard the pirate ship and while most were heading to bed or rotating shifts Finnick was here, standing in front of the door he wasn't supposed to, and couldn't figure out whether to stay or run.

“Come on Finnick, you can do this,” Finnick was muttering to himself as he stood in front of the Captain’s Quarters, “Don't chicken out now you fucker…” He bounced in place for a few seconds more before sighing and wrapping a paw around the doorknob.

The door slowly creaked as he forced it to open just enough for him to stick a part of his head through, “N-Nicky?” His voice wavered, “A-Are you in here?” Even with the lighter attitude, Wilde had adapted over the last week Finnick could honestly say he still feared him… more of what he’d say then what he’d do to him.

“Finnick,” the said name sent a chill down the small fox’s spine from how disconnected it sounded… how _empty_ it felt in his voice.

“What do you want?”

“I… I want to talk.”

“That what we're doing right now.”

“You know what I mean N- Wilde. We have… things to discuss.”

Though he couldn't see in he could hear the offended scoff that left the captain’s lungs, “I’m pleased you’re feeling better, but I still have nothing to say to you. Goodbye.”

“But-”

“ _Goodbye Finnick._ ”

The fennec froze as he tried deciding what to do… when all rational thought was thrown out by anger, “No.”

“What?”

“I said,” he flung the door open and stood in the doorway fists clenched, “ _no_. We're going to talk whether you like it or not.”

The amber colored fox sat at his table with his muzzle wide open in shock. He quickly recovered, however, then crossed his arms over his chest, “Fine, but leave your sand pouch at the door. I don't want to look at it,” he complied, “okay: what do you want?”

“I’m sorry.”

That was different, “What?”

“I said I’m sorry. I know it was stupid of me to not tell you that I was a Magician… I just thought you-”

“And there's your problem,” Wilde cut in, “you were assuming what I thought when you could’ve just directly asked me,” I sigh escaped his lips before he went and sat on his bed, patting the spot next to him. Deserttail nodded as he walked over and pulled himself onto the bed.

“So-”

“So-”

They looked at one another in shock… before lightly chuckling at each other. Their softer and deeper tones mixed together well as their laughter filled the already tense air, loosening its grip. Once both foxes had recollected themselves Nicholas looked down at Finnick, “Why don't we take turns: you go first and tell me what’s on your mind then I’ll do the same after I hear what you have to say, is that okay?”

“Yeah… that works.”

“Okay then, shoot.”

Despite the simple, but no less nice, moment they just shared Finnick could already feel his nerves getting the better of him.

 _‘Better to speak no and get it over with.’_ “Look Wilde… I meant what I said when I said I’m sorry. I was a fuckin’ idiot when I thought you wouldn’t notice and it was stupid of me to try to hide it. I was… to be honest with you, I was scared.”

Wilde furrowed his brows at this, “What do you mean? Scared, scared of what?”

“Scared… of hurting you,” Finnick held his head in his paws as he pulled on his fur, “I didn't have my family to teach me… do you remember them?”

“Of course I… I… Ugh….” Finnick flicked an ear hearing Wilde groan in pain, and when he looked to see what was wrong he saw the russet fox gripping his head and… his eyes glowed with _purple rings_ around his irises. As quickly the pain came it seemed to leave Nicholas just as fast. Breathing heavily for a moment before shaking, “I-I… I'm sorry, what were we just talking about?”

The small fox was stunned, _‘What the hell just happened with you Nicky?’_ “It… It doesn't matter, point is that I didn't have anyone to teach me magic. I had to learn it all myself,” Wilde seemed to roll back into the conversation and listened intently to what the fennec had to say, “Controlling the other elements is difficult and puts a strain on my body. Using the sand in my pouch, which was given to me by my father, is like having an extra set of limbs, it just feels natural, but… using other earth is where I have trouble. It's like when I'm drunk: some days I can see pretty clearly and other days… everything just feels muddled. There's only enough sand to shield me, so using regular earth for you…”

“You were worried that you might hurt me more than help me.”

“...Yeah. And I know I shoulda just sucked it up and protected you like I’m supposed to but-”

“Wait,” Wilde cut in, “what do you mean ‘like I'm supposed to’? I’m upset that you never used it in certain situations, but you’re not my guardsman or anything.”

“But that's _the thing_ Nicky… I am. My family has protected yours for _years_ and it was _my duty_ to watch the eldest of yours, which meant you.” This came as news to Wilde. Sure, Finnick had his back a few times- not enough times apparently- but… he was _supposed_ to protect him? That made a fire in his chest burn with anger. That fire, however, was extinguished when he saw the pain that riddled Finnick’s face, only for Wilde himself to have a sickening thought, “Did… Did you _actually love_ me Finnick? Or was it just out of a sense of duty?”

“What? No! I mean yes, I-I mean- Ugh!” He pounded his fist into the bed, “You just _had_ to be _you_ , didn't you? Had to be handsome and funny and a sarcastic pain in my ass, I didn't _plan_ on falling in love but I _did!_ It was _always real_ , and that's what made seeing you hurt worse… I was too chickenshit to do anything…” His hackles raised and fists clenched, the fennec shook with pain, “I was… I’m _stupid_ … I’m _weak_ … and I’ll _never_ be good enough for someone like you… this was a retarded thing to do, you’ll always hate me.”

“I don't hate you Fin,” this was news to the fennec, “I don't think I have in me _to_ hate you; I’m frustrated, hurt, and betrayed… but I don't hate you. Listen,” he raked his claws through both of their furs, “I’m glad you came to me and that we talked, and I understand how terribly you feel,” The fennec seemed to light up, “but…” and just like that the light was gone, “...I don't think I can do this again, not right now anyway. You’ve been with me since the beginning, so I’m not going to throw you off the ship, but I still need time to think about whether we can be together or not. You’ve given me more things to account for, so you’ll never know.”

The tod pulled the small fox into a tight hug, “And stop beating yourself up… that's for drunk mammals and crew members to do, not you,” he felt the fennec tug at his shoulder as he buried his snout into his chest. They stayed like this for a moment before, reluctantly, releasing each other, “I’ll see you in the morning, okay Fin?”

“Yea… I’ll see you, Captain,” was the last thing he said before grabbing his sand pouch and heading out. Unbeknownst to Wilde, there was a bounce to Finnick’s step and a sliver of hope in his heart.

You never know what might come of a new day… and you never know what kind of surprises wait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now how was that? We're _finally_ on our way to the Zootopia of the universe and the foxes came to better ground for the both of them...
> 
> Now I wonder what just might happen next.
> 
> But you don't have to wait that long, but in the meantime tell me your thoughts and what you might think is going to happen. I would love to know!
> 
> See you all next week!


	11. 10- The Past shines Through

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“Sometimes, remembering hurts too much.”_  
>  ― Jess Rothenberg, The Catastrophic History of You and Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone, glad to see you again!
> 
> This chapter, if you couldn't tell, is the longest one so far: just a bit of _7,000_ words, that's crazy! Not as crazy as knowing that this chapter was actually going to be close to _16,000_ words, but I split it in two- gives you something to look forward to in two weeks ;P
> 
> This chapter was extremely difficult to get off the ground as the beginning was kicking my ass, so if it seems a little off that's why. I did my best with what I could come up with so yeah...
> 
> This is, in my opinion, an exposition dump... kinda, a lot is going to be said and shown so I do hope you all enjoy!
> 
> You see any mistakes, point them out, and I'll fix them- without further ado let's get into the next chapter of Swords and Sorcerers!

It was the next morning and it started like any other… well, as you would expect the morning on a pirate to start.

Wolford, as always, was up in the Crow’s Nest enjoying the solitude and looking over the horizon; Clawhauser was actually teaching a chunk of the crew how to read while Bogo had to pick up the slack and do more heavy lifting; Finnick was doing his best to guide the waves while Wilde and Hopps commanded the ship; and the rest of the crew was going about their business of keeping the ship running smooth. Everyone was occupied with something on the ship.

Even if it didn't directly relate to the ship.

Shadow, Sly, and Lucky, as you would have it, were in the crew’s quarters with somber looks on their faces.

“I may have a silver tongue, but even I would have trouble convincing anyone of _anything_ with this kind of evidence,” Sly said as he crossed his legs, “it's circumstantial at best.”

“Sly’s right,” Lucky added, “all we have is two moments where both Hopps and Wilde experienced a momentary freeze and everything else you’ve presented us is just assumptions on your part.”

“But that's the thing,” Shadow began, “Finnick earlier, when I talked to him, told me that he saw a ring of _purple_ around the captain’s irises when he mentioned his family; Hopps had the same thing, of opposite color, happen to her when Sly mentioned the nickname ‘Carrots’. There’s something up with them like… like something wants to get through. Like-“

“Memories.” The wolf turned to his bunny friend and smiled, “Yes, Lucky, memories… that’s exactly what I was thinking. If memories serve: Nicholas Piberius Wilde and Judith Laverne Hopps are always together, almost bound by fate. Whether romantic or not those two mammals always find their way to each other, but everything about these two seem... _off._ There’s history here but something’s keeping them from fully realizing it,” Shadow frowned for a moment as he continued pacing, “Memories can be a tricky thing… but I think I have something for them.”

“What is it?” Sly asked.

“If I can find an item from their past I can use it to trigger latent memories and we might be able to see what’s really going on in their heads,” after a few more seconds of pondering Sly and Lucky watched as the light in the wolf’s eyes glowed and his muzzle widening, “and I know exactly what to use…”

_____

It was late afternoon when they put their plan into action. The three mammals stood at the entrance of the hull, “okay,” Shadow began, “does everyone remember what they’re doing?”

“Of course,” Sly claimed, “you’re going to break into the Captain’s Quarters while Lucky and I keep the rest of the crew distracted. Long Ear is in charge of watching Wolford and Buff n Fluff so they don't notice anything out of the ordinary, as I keep the captain, Fin, and Hopps occupied and away from the Quarters. We’ll both detour any of the other crew members from going below deck if possible.” He finished reciting by crossing his arms and looking on with the smugest of smiles, “how’s _that_ for remembering?”

Shadow stood there slightly astonished, but not all that surprised, “Nicely done Sly, I guess we shouldn’t keep stalling, get to it!"

_____

“Alright Shadow, this should be simple for you,” mumbled the red wolf as he stared into the lock on the door. Unsheathing a claw he dug around for a while to no avail, “huh… guess my claw’s not long enough so how… oh!” Shadow reached into his coat and pulled out his wand- with a rattlesnake and skeleton handle with ridges along the body, “oh Harry Potter… what would the Multiverse do without you?” Pondered the wolf as he pointed the wand at the lock, “Alohomora!” The lock clicked.

With the door open, Shadow sneaked his way in and shut the only exit. With it being a particularly small room, suited for at least two, it wasn't all that hard to turn his attention over the glass cabinet, “Jackpot!” 

It should’ve been easy: get in, open the cabinet, grab the staffs, and get out… but one does not expect when he reaches for the latch to be pushed back and his paw’s fur to be signed, “Aw! What the…?” Watching the smoke whisk up from his paw, he caught a glimpse of gold symbols lacing the outer edges of the display case. Upon closer inspection, though the symbols were altered somewhat, the wolf recognized the magic, “tsk, a warding spell? But I thought…”

_**“I had Cornelius with me at the time, so I asked him to take and clean them before we put them in this here cabinet. And aren't they beautiful?...”** _

“Bogo, of course. The buffalo seems to have some tricks up his sleeves after all… nothing I can't handle though,” stepping back a bit the wolf raised his paws, which began to glow a shining silver. Small markings etched into his fur as he focused onto the latch, “ _Intermissum!_

Spell uttered, counter markings overlayed the previous symbols in order to cancel them out… only for them to burn away and blast the canine back. Banging his head against the opposite wall, a rippling headache shot through Shadow in a snap. The young wolf perplexed as he cradled his head, “Ow… Wasn't expecting _that._ ” Looking back up he could see two more colored arrays, one of cyan and the other of blood red, interlocking with the original gold. A defensive and nullifying spell.

As surprise faded Shadow began chuckling, “What an unexpected obstacle… I’ll have to ask Bogo where he learned this. No matter, I’ll just have to bring out the big guns,” pulling his spellbook from his jacket it levitated in front of him, flipping through the numerous pages, “At least I’ll get a fun challenge out of it!”

_____

Above deck Sly spent his time observing the captain, Fin, and Hopps for any actions he would have to interfere with, but luckily enough everything seemed to be going quite well for him. Other than turning some crew away from below deck- suggesting he go fetch for whatever they needed- their plan seems to be going smoothly so far. Shadow had been under for about 20 minutes and all the tod could hope for was that the wolf knew what he was doing, _‘What am I thinking, he's probably done this kind of thing plenty of times… he’ll be fine,’_ Sly speculated as he made his across the stern to the fennec who was guiding the waters, “Ahoy Finnick, are you doing alright over here?” If the flickering of the deep blue circle underneath Finnick’s feet was any indication, the fox was struggling.

“I’m fine,” he lied, “just a little winded is all,” his panting between sentences wasn’t helping his case.

Sly took note, “Well I was just wondering if you wanted some help is all, _but_ if you say you’re fine then…” the tod spun on his heel and began walking away when-

“Wait!”

The russet fox peered over his shoulder, “Yes?”

“Were you serious? About the help?”

“Well me and Lucky aren't exactly elementalists ourselves, but that doesn't mean we don't know what we're doing. You want me to take some of the load off? You’ve been at it for a while and something tells me that isn't doing well for your reserves.”

The fennec froze for a moment before nodding, “Yeah, that’d be nice.”

“Alrighty then!” The tod exclaimed as he stretched himself out and took up space next to Finnick, a similar deep blue circle- albeit a bit bigger- formed underneath him. Mimicking the desert fox’s movements, Sly matched Finnick’s flow as they both did what they could in guiding the ocean’s current. Hydromancy, as it’s most commonly referred to, allows the user to manipulate water and a few other liquids. Elementalists control many types of matters, but they usually need a source- unlike fire and a few others. Allowing their bodies the relax, Sly and Finnick fell into using the soft movement from Tai Chi Chuan, a Chinese martial art, as it mirrored the loose feel of water. 

This went on for almost 20 minutes and during that time Sly would occasionally peek over at the fennec and see how… unburdened he seemed. Sly was right after all: having someone assist you in a spell allowed the load of casting to distribute amongst the users. Seeing Finnick less strained than he had been before brought a smile to Sly’s face, Hopps seemed to take note of that when she strolled over, “What are you smirking about?

“ _Nothing,_ ” the tod feigned ignorance, “can't a fox smile for no reason? Maybe I just like smiling.”

“Yeah, but something about your face tells me you're up to something.”

“Awfully speciest of you-” _‘And scarily accurate-’_ Sly fluttered open his eyes, “I like helping others out, is that a crime?”

“No, I guess not,” Hopps fell silent as she leaned against the rails as she watched the foxes a few more minutes before Sly broke his stance, the casting dissolving underneath his feet, “Why don't we take a break for now Finnick? I think the sea can take it from here.”

Sighing the fennec broke his stance as well, cracking his back as he stretched, “I guess that’s fine. Imma get some food,” he turned towards the Captain, “yo Wilde! You still got fruit in you Quarters?”

“Yes I do Finnick,” he answered without turning is attention away from stirring the ship, “Are you asking for some?” 

“If that's not too much trouble…” In a snap, Finnick seemed almost unsure of himself, as he was still treading a bit lightly around the Reynard, “I’m just feelin’ a bit peckish is all.”

A soft chuckle left the tod lips, “It's just fruit Finnick it’s not big deal,” Wilde reached into his pocket as tossed the fennec his room key, “it's locked so you’ll need that.”

Everything was fine with everyone else… except for Sly, who was internally screaming.

Before Finnick could even take a step forward, Sly swept by him and taking the key with him, “Hey! What's the big idea?!” 

_‘Think Sly think!’_ “I… wanted to get you food myself. I already assisted you in guided the currents, so why don't I get you some food?” He gave the tod a soft smile before ruffling the top of his head, eliciting a growl from the fennec, “It's no big deal really, I’ll be back in a flash!” Without giving anyone time to argue, Sly sped down the stairs and headed below deck, _‘smooth… they won’t suspect anything at all…’_ he cynically thought as he scrambled over to Wilde’s Quarters, hoping to see Shadow with the staffs in hand by now…

What he got, however, was a room swirling with wind, a wolf with a glowing book floating in front of him, and mixed colored glyphs floating about as said wolf chanted.

 _‘Oh Lord…’_

The fox slipped in, somehow unnoticed by the wolf, grabbed an orange out of the bowl on the table, and ran out shutting the door behind him, “...Well… he seems to be having fun.”

_____

Lucky caught a glimpse of Sly as he seems to rushed downstairs, _‘Hope everything's alright,’_ she thought before focusing back on what she was doing.

It had been over 40 minutes since Shadow went down into the Captain’s Quarters and so far nothing’s happened, at least in her end.

Wolford spent the whole of the time sitting up in the Crow’s Nest that day while Cornelius was doing some heavy lifting of barrels and crates around the deck. Benjamin was in charge- after finishing his teachings- of doing inventory check to see what they had and what needed resupply later, but would find himself- on more than one occasion- watching Bogo work. It was quite endearing to the rabbit.

Lucky decided to strike up a conversation with the portly cheetah as, to her, Sly had the hull covered by deterring crew members from going below as much as possible.

Walking over she jumped up on the railing next to him, “Hey Clawhauser, how’s everything going?”

Like usual, the feline beamed with a bright smile as he shifted in her direction, “Hey Lucky! Everything’s pretty good so far, from what I’ve been able to go through we're pretty good on food and other things. Though…” Benjamin started flipping through his notes in the small journal he had out, “we are running low on gunpowder, we need to restock on building material- for any damage to the ship-, and some new equipment for the crew. The Gunners have been a little antsy with how… unreliable some of our artillery can be at times, and most of the crew just want new swords, daggers, and boarding axes.”

“Really? Shadow, Sly and I have been here a hair under three weeks and from what we could tell the ship’s always looked-”

“Like it’s brand new?” The bunny nodded, “Well that’s how the Captain likes it, it would be a little bothersome if the vessel you lived on seemed to be falling apart at the seams. He has the smaller members, like the weasels and ferrets, fix cracks and tears and such in the hard to reach area while larger mammals, like lions, tigers, and bears, fix bigger problems like cracked masts and make sure the ship itself doesn't look cluttered. Medium-sized mammals help out with cracked floorboards and polish around the ship. Everyone helps out with cleaning it.”

“Wow! A lot goes into maintaining The Jolly Arrow, doesn't it?”

“Yeah, the captain like to take care of his home. Some of the equipment… not so much. That's not his fault, though, some of the stuff here is just old and needs replacing.”

Their chat only lasted a few more minutes before a loud crash caused them both to jump. They whipped around to see Bogo, with a splintered crate at his feet, as he stared wide-eyed at nothing in particular. They rushed over, concern riddling Clawhauser’s face, “Bogo, are you okay, what’s wrong?”

“It's open…” he huffed out as his features shifted from shock to confusion to anger.

“Open? Babe, what's open?”

Cornelius didn't answer, a look of determination burning in his amber eyes, as he began stomping over to go _below_ deck.

 _‘Uh oh,’_ the bunny thought as she tried to catch up to the water buffalo and cheetah, “Bogo I don't think-”

“Captain!” He cut her off without a second thought as he called for Wilde, “It’s open!”

Wilde stared out from the stern with a confused look for a moment before realization warped into frustration, “How?! My Quarters are locked, so no one should be in there!” The russet fox sprinted down the stairs, with Finnick; Hopps; and Sly in tow, “you told me that only _you_ could open it,” he stood strong in front of the buffalo, “did you lie?”

“No, Captain, I did not. I said I was the only one to open it, but that doesn't account for anyone else trying to break the binding,” with this info brought to light it had a certain bunny and fox freeze before trying to sling away… only to be halted a pair of swords from a pig and lion.

“Sly… Lucky,” the pair were spun around to see the forced smile of the Captain, “you wouldn't know anything about this, would you?”

_____

_Moments Earlier…_

Shadow’s chest began to burn as sweat dripped through his fur, 45 minutes went by since he began his casting and a smile bloomed on his muzzle.

Many of the wolf’s own glyphs boxed out the cabinet as they ground away at the cyan and blood red arrays- that appeared in the beginning- while the red wolf himself was chanting to crack the original seal. And after almost an hour, his work was paying off.

He watched as the additional arrays turned to ash and crumbled while the gold seal began to flicker and fade, _‘Now’s my chance!’_ Shadow understood as he crossed his arms, “ _Et Conlidam!_ ” And, on command, the gold markings shattered as they turned to dust. Success.

Everything that was swirling through the air fell with gravity as the young wolf collapsed to the ground. His spellbook falling out of the air and almost smashing his paws.

It took a minute or two for Shadow to catch his breath and stand back up, “That as more challenging than I thought… That was some serious protection!” He reminded himself to commend Bogo on his casting and how much trouble it gave him later, but for now, he had a prize to collect. As he stumbled over to lift the latch and opened the window to the glass cabinet he just stared in awe, “It was a lot of work getting you two,” he muttered as he grabbed both staffs and stuffed them in his jacket. Luckily the thing was enchanted so anything stored within it was put in a void and could be easily taken out if needed. After cleaning up the Captain's Quarters, and storing his book back in his jacket, he locked up the room and headed upstairs.

He wasn't expecting 30 or so mammals to have varying guns and blades at the ready as the Captain had his flintlock pistol drawn at him while Sly and Lucky had cutlasses against their throats, “Afternoon Shadow, I believe you have something of mine.”

“Is this all for me? I'm touched Captain you didn't have to do that,” he tried alleviating the tension with some humor.

Needless to say it didn't work.

“Let's not dance around this, okay? You have things that belong to me and I would appreciate it if you handed them back, then I just _might_ allow you and your friends to live in the brig before throwing you off the boat.”

Shadow held up his paws, “Alright, Alright, you got me, but I promise it's not what it looks like.”

“Oh really? Because it looks like you and your friends tried to distract me and other from going below deck while made an attempt at stealing the only two staffs in my possession.”

“How did you…” It clicked with the wolf as he started laughing, “a silent alarm,” he mumbled, “I’m guessing the moment I broke the spell Cornelius was alerted right away, wasn't he?”

Wilde nodded.

“So I have to ask: Are you a Magician Bogo?”

“No I’m not. It skipped me in my family, but that didn't stop my father from teaching me a spell that any mammal could use.”

“‘That any mammal could use’? It took me almost an hour to break it! From the look of it, it must’ve been a personally brewed binding, I’ll have to compliment your father for creating it and you for casting it… it gave me one helluva fight!”

The red wolf reached into his coat and brought out the different sized staffs, “But like I said earlier, I didn't take these for the reason you believe I did.”

“What might that reason be Shadow because whatever answer you give me might just end your friends’ lives,” Sly and Lucky went slightly wide-eyed at the implications of their death… and what it would mean if they did die here.

Shadow was having the same conflict internally, so he chose his word carefully, “Well one of your crew should already know why. Isn't that right… _**Carrots?**_ ” At the mention of the nickname, Hopps gripped her head in pain. Wilde was the same, but to a lesser degree, “And what _**Finnick’s Family**_ Nick? You remember them?” Both Hopps and Wilde dropped their gear as the pain worsened. The wolf smirked, “It hurts, doesn't it? Well, it should, that just proves what I need to know.”

Wolford growled as he leveled his musket, “ _What are you doing to them?_ ”

“Me? Nothing. Everything they’re experiencing is _all them._ The pain is the result of their minds trying to remember something that it physically _can't…_ not without something to guide them of course.”

The pair gathered their bearings, Wilde glaring at Shadow, “Keep talking…”

“I may have a knack for magic, but I consider myself a mammal of science. And from simple observation,” he lifts the staff in his right paw, “this staff was built for a smaller predator: dense, but not too heavy; sturdy, but not too stiff; and the wood this was carved from allows for comfortable grip for someone with sharper claws. This one on the other hand,” he lifted the staff in his left paw, “was built for prey on the smaller side: light, but not fragile; a bit flexible, but not swishy like a wand; and the wood is smooth, though it has enough texture to it for it not to slip from one’s paws.” He held them both out in front, “In conclusion: one was made for a _fox_ and the other was made for a _rabbit._ They’re even carved from the same tree just different parts… a pair of staffs for a pair of Magicians, and I believe they belong to you and Hopps, Captain.”

Everyone stood stunned as they fixed their gaze of their Captain and First Mate, “But… But that not possible! Hopps and I have never cast a spell in our lives!”

“From what _you_ remember,” Wilde open his maw to say more but was cut off, “you trusted her, didn't you? The moment you met Hopps gave fully gave your trust to her and her’s to you, am I right?”

Silence.

“There's been a bond between you, but neither of you knows what it is or if it's all in your heads. There's an unspoken truth between the two of you, but both parties don't seem to remember the words behind that truth. So I propose a bet.”

His ear perked, “What is it?”

“The two of you come grip these staffs with your bare paws and if something happens then you’ll have to listen to me, for whatever happens after. If not… then you can decide the fates of me and my friends. All I ask is that you touch them.”

The crew began murmuring amongst themselves as Hopps and Wilde seem to contemplate what Shadow was offering. What he said did hold some sort of sense and the deal was fair, all they had to do was grab the staffs to see who was right and wrong.

After a minute Wilde saw the answer in his First Mate’s eyes, “Alright, Shadow, we’ll bite. You got yourself a deal.”

They cautiously walked over to the staffs that were “made” for them as he held them out, “on the count of three Hopps…”

“One…”

“Two…”

“Three/Three!” They quickly reached out.

There was a boom.

_____

Pain. Burning Pain.

That's what Wilde felt.

This burning pain shot through his entire being, right down to his soul, and it felt like it was tearing him apart from the inside out.

But we began to feel things… see things… things he had never seen before.

As he looked around everything around him seemed… murky. Everything except what was right in front of him.

He was in a forest… and two children were playing. A boy fox and a girl bunny. Something seemed oddly familiar about them.

Neither seemed to notice him, so as they ran so did he. They were laughing and giggling and jumping through bushes and having the best of times. They continued to chase each other through the forest, _“Carrots wait up!”_ the fox called out, _“This isn't fair! You’re so much faster than me!”_ The young tod whined.

A giggle escaped the bunny, _“You’re not much of a pred if you can't catch a simple prey, you can keep up!”_

The chase continued for a while and the tod never seem to catch up, _“This is just sad, come on NiiIIIAAHHHH!”_ The bunny managed to trip and started tumbling down a hill.

 _“Carrots!”_ The tod exclaimed as he chased her down. At the bottom, he could hear the sniffle of his crying friend and after a few moments, he found her sitting on the ground clutching her leg, _“Carrots! Are you alright?”_ he asked as he scooted to her side. There was a big cut that ran up a bit of the bunny’s left calf, bleeding slowly, _“I-I-It h-hurts…”_

_“Can you move it?”_

The bunny shook her head.

 _“Well… m-maybe… here!”_ The tod reached into his pocket and pulled out a red bandana, _“Here, let me…”_ He pressed it against her wound, the bunny doing the same. They sat there for a while and the bleeding didn't seem to stop… until their paws began to _glow._ The light seems to envelop her leg for a bit before it faded… the pain was gone.

Upon removing the bandana there was… no wound. The gash was gone, though the blood still stained her fur but other than that she was fine. She stood cautiously and tested it out, it was completely healed, _“How… How is that…”_ Their paws began to glow once more, the fox’s a deep purple and the bunny’s a soft green, and as the light faded… they both smiled.

Wilde watched as they began bouncing with joy, pulling each other into a hug, _“We have to tell Papa and Uncle!”_ And with that the kids ran off.

The scene shifted to where the young tod was by himself… with an older fox. He had darker fur than the boy and had the kindest blue eyes. He was crouched down next to the young tod. Muttering things Wilde couldn't hear. He watched as the russet fox guided the boy’s hand up and aimed it at a tree in front of them. Wilde walked around from the back to see the boy’s eyes were closed as his breathing seemed to slow. At the corner of his eye, Wilde caught the glint of purple as an intricate circle glowed on the surface of the tree… and it began disappearing. The tree faded away until there was nothing standing where it was… it was just gone.

the fox gestured him to open his eyes and what the young tod saw, or rather didn't see, brought a big smile to the kid’s muzzle, _“See, what did i tell you? You’re learning fast! I have no doubt you’re gonna be the best Illusionist the world’s ever seen!”_

Wilde just grinned at the scene before it faded, “...Father…”

_____

Pain. Burning Pain.

That's what Hopps felt.

This burning pain shot through her entire being, right down to her soul, and it felt like it was tearing her apart from the inside out.

But we began to feel things… see things… things she had never seen before.

As she looked around everything around him seemed… murky. Everything except what was right in front of her.

She was in a forest… and two children were playing. A boy fox and a girl bunny. Something seemed oddly familiar about them.

Neither seemed to notice her, so as they ran so did she. They were laughing and giggling and jumping through bushes and having the best of times. They continued to chase each other through the forest, _“Carrots wait up!”_ the fox called out, _“This isn't fair! You’re so much faster than me!”_ The young tod whined.

A giggle escaped the bunny, _“You’re not much of a pred if you can't catch a simple prey, you can keep up!”_

The chase continued for a while and the tod never seem to catch up, _“This is just sad, come on NiiIIIAAHHHH!”_ The bunny managed to trip and started tumbling down a hill.

 _“Carrots!”_ The tod exclaimed as he chased her down. At the bottom, he could hear the sniffle of his crying friend and after a few moments, he found her sitting on the ground clutching her leg, _“Carrots! Are you alright?”_ he asked as he scooted to her side. There was a big cut that ran up a bit of the bunny’s left calf, bleeding slowly, _“I-I-It h-hurts…”_

_“Can you move it?”_

The bunny shook her head.

 _“Well… m-maybe… here!”_ The tod reached into his pocket and pulled out a red bandana, _“Here, let me…”_ He pressed it against her wound, the bunny doing the same. They sat there for a while and the bleeding didn't seem to stop… until their paws began to _glow._ The light seems to envelop her leg for a bit before it faded… the pain was gone.

Upon removing the bandana there was… no wound. The gash was gone, though the blood still stained her fur but other than that she was fine. She stood cautiously and tested it out, it was completely healed, _“How… How is that…”_ Their paws began to glow once more, the fox’s a deep purple and the bunny’s a soft green, and as the light faded… they both smiled.

Wilde watched as they began bouncing with joy, pulling each other into a hug, _“We have to tell Papa and Uncle!”_ And with that, the kids ran off.

The scene shifted to where the young doe was by herself… with an older buck. He was a stout brown rabbit with hazel eyes. In front of the two of them were four pots each with a different substance: fire, water, earth, and air (that pot was empty). The doe watched as a deep blue circle formed and faded on the water pot and she watched as the older rabbit moved his paw in a fluid motion, causing the water to shift its way into the air. The doe stared in awe and as he gestured for her to do the same she practically vibrated in place. Hopps shifted around to see the young doe close her eyes, and what she witnessed baffled her. Instead of one circle forming all four lit up: the fire blazed higher, the earth floated and solidified into a ball, the water snaked up in multiple pieces, and the empty pot had a self-contained tornado in it. 

As the doe open her eyes again she practically glowed as she looked up at the rabbit, _“Well I’ll be… I don't think in my lifetime have I seen a more powerful Elementalist. Sweetheart… you’re gonna be great!”_

Hopps just grinned at the scene before it faded, “...Papa…”

_____

The moment the two grabbed the staffs Shadow, and anyone close enough, were blasted back as auras of green and purple engulfed the two; Their screams filling the air.

The wolf watched as various glyphs came and went as the Captain and Hopps held on, and it was fascinating to him. He had never seen magic react so violently before, so he was complete at a loss for words. 

As their cries of pain continued to ring out Shadow noticed something… a symbol. This symbol of a violet hue was almost etched into the back of their heads, and that's where the most concentrated of the glyphs were… trying to crack them, disassemble the spell they didn't know was there. And they continued to work… and work… and work… and work.

Then they broke.

Almost like slow motion, Shadow watched intently as the markings on the backs of both mammals heads feel apart, which unleashed a pulse of energy knocking over everyone on deck. 

Nothing but the sounds of the ocean filled the air as everyone pushed themselves off the ground and stared in anticipation at their Captain and First Mate. 

Both Wilde and Hopps were breathing heavily as they burned holes in the wooden deck with how hard they stared into it, blinking as they came to. Wilde was the first to speak.

“Well… I can see why I fancied these…” He croaked out as he wrapped his paws more comfortably 'round the staff.

“Uncle made them for the both of us…” Hopps rolled hers between her paws, “he was going to give them to us when we were ready…” 

Upon hearing each other's voice they slowly began to pan up until emerald met amethyst.

Hopps let out a breathless laugh, “...Brother…”

Wilde smiled fully, “...Dear sister…”

In an instant they dropped their staffs and ran into each other’s arms and held one another close.

_____

Tears welled up in Hopps’s eyes, “I’ve missed you, _so much!_ ”

They were falling freely on the fox, “As did I… As did I…” His muzzle twisted into a huge smile as he picked… _**Judy**_ up and spun her around, “ _Ha HA!_ ”

The pair started to laugh with one another as the rest of the crew watched in confusion, not fully understanding what was going on. After a spin, or three, Wilde set her down and cupped her face, “I love you!” He shouted as he placed kisses all over the top of her head.

Needless to say that she didn't like that, “What are you- No, stop it- Ew, this is so gross! Nick, no, stop it!”

Her adamant rejection of his affection got a chuckle out of him, “What’s the problem? You didn't have issue with this when Father and Uncle did it.”

“Yes, that's because they’re obligated to do it! When you do it it's weird…”

“I guess I’m weird for showing my sibling love then,” holding a paw on his chest in mock hurt Hopps effectively rolled her eyes at the display.

“You are insufferable at times.”

“Only when I need to be,” _**Nick**_ responded with a smirk.

This bickering went on for a while longer until Judy abruptly stopped and went wide-eyed, “Wait a minute… you’re a pirate. A _pirate Captain._ ”

Nick, in response, cocked his head, “Huh… you’re right, I _am_ a pirate Captain. And what I remember,” he playfully jabbed a digit into her chest, “ _You’re_ my First Mate.”

It was Judy’s times to smirk a bit, “Huh… well I’ll be! You know… Uncle wouldn't be too happy about that.”

“No, father would not be. You have to admit though it sounds rather intriguing: Captain Nick Wilde and First Mate Carrots!”

Judy groaned, “ _No…_ I feel like I just got used to you using my name.”

“Too bad! You are what I call you and I say you are Carrots, my First Mate.”

“Why you- Wait!” her ears stiffened as something clicked in her head, “I just remembered, You… and…” She faced the entire crew until she found who she was looking for, eyes lighting up, “Finny!” Judy bolted over and enraptured Finnick in a tight hug.

The fennec himself just groaned as the bunny bounced, “Ugh, and here I was hopin’ you forgot that nickname…”

“I would never! Well, I did, but I remember now! And while we're on the topic of you,” Hopps set Finnick down, “I always had a feeling you’d get together with bro, but I thought I was just wishful thinking on my part.”

“Were you trying to set me up?” Wilde called out.

“No, but like I said I always hoped and now…” The smile on her face began to fade into a frown… and became a contortion of disgust, “Aw! No! No- Stop it mind, I don't want to think about that!”

“Think about what?”

Her face glowed red.

Her brother smirked, “Well now, it seems that bunnies _do_ have a dirty mind,” He came over a placed a paw on her shoulder, “Not to worry Carrots, I’ll still love you even with these sinful thoughts.” That earned him a punch to the gut.

Before anything else can be said one of the Gunners, a tigress, spoke up, “Can someone explain to me what’s happening?”

“Simple,” Shadow dusted himself off and strolled over, “with the little information that I had to work with I came to the conclusion that both Hopps and Wilde’s memories were altered, some sort of spell at play. After examining the staffs in Wilde’s Quarters I soon realized they were made for him and Hopps, and since neither had come in contact with them I believed that if they did then their long-buried memories would resurface. Looks like I was right.”

He looked at the tod and doe, “Though I wasn't expecting such a flip in personality, care to explain?”

The tod and doe glanced at one another, Judy spoke first, “We… It was like we were watching someone else sail the ship while we sat in the back as support. It was us just not completely, but now…”

“It finally feels like were whole again,” Wilde gazed at Finnick, “and being whole gives us things we had long since forgotten, for example one’s past.”

Deserttail was left open-mawed, “You… you remember?”

“Yes Fin I do. _We_ do. Though you didn't go into detail you were right, your family has protected ours for generations. The Deserttail lineage was first appointed by our ancestors, Doran Loxless and Gwendolynn Hightail, to watch over and protect their descendants that showed immense strength in the Magic Arts. It was only in the last one hundred years that mine and Carrots’ families came together to live as one, so it made assigning a guardsman easier since we never left each other’s side they only needed to assign one… you, Finnick.” Wilde snickered as he shook his head, “You used to cheat in some of the games we played with that pouch of yours once you got it, I can still hear my sister’s pouting because you trapped her to a tree by wrapping a stone blanket around her.”

“Heh, yeah that was pretty funny.”

“Not for me!” shouted Judy, “It was never fair when you did that, I always lost our games because of things like that!”

“Well if you didn't act like a dumb bunny then maybe you coulda outsmarted us foxes!”

Never had a smack been so audible as it had been against Finnick’s skull; I was a piercing noise that led to a roar of laughter from the entire crew.

Once the laughter died- and the fennec grumbled out some curses- the red wolf cleared his throat, “So, Hopps, Wilde, am I to assume that my friends and I won't be thrown overboard?”

A thoughtful look filled the features of the fox-captain before coming to a consensus, “Yes, as of now I will look over this small mutiny _only because_ you reunited me with my sister. I thank you for that. Now,” Nick went over and scooped up both staffs, “that brings up a question we had forgotten to ask when the incident happened: Why did Clanweaver attack us? I know he doesn't really like our families- now anyways- but I still don't get why he attacked or why he wanted us.”

“Simple,” repeated Shadow, his tail low and eyes dark, “he wanted your magic.” The questioning gaze of all urged him to continue, “The night on Camele Isle Sly and Lucky were kidnapped by Micheal. He had believed them to be you two and in that realization, he finally had the mammals he wanted to strip their magic from.”

“But that's not possible, Papa and Auntie told us just that! Magic is at the core of every living thing and cannot be separated,” Judy’s nose began to twitch in irritation.

“He had developed a ritual in order to do just that, rip the magic out of someone’s being,” Sly stepped over with Lucky, “He tried using it on us and let me tell you it wasn't fun. Our entire bodies felt like they were on fire, and the only reason he stopped was that our magics didn't match to who he thought we were,” he gestured to Wilde, “an Illusionist,” moving over to Hopps, “and an Elementalist. He would’ve killed us if it wasn't for Shadow.”

“That why he wants you,” the wolf continued, “he wants to be the most powerful Magician in existence, and in order to accomplish that he needs to steal the magic of five others… the other five paths. He thought taking out the two of you, the descendants of the Inner Circle, would leave him with fewer problems. From what Sly and Lucky told me they said that Michael hated you two because one of your ancestors refused his because of the other, do you know what that means?’

Nick sighed, “I do… Doran and Gwendolynn began falling in love during the time that Olivia brought her plan to the others. If it wasn't for Hightail and showing him the joys of life and nature he might’ve accepted her deal. She might’ve won with his help,” his grip on his staff tightened, “then… then I guess we’ll…” Nick’s words became distant as he fell to his knees, the same with Hopps.

Sly and Lucky rushed to their sides and kept them from completely keeling over, “Woah there! You two alright?” asked the golden-eyed fox.

“Y-Yeah… I’m just… tired all of the sudden.”

Shadow snorted, “Well I would expect so Captain, you and your sister expended much of your personal reserves when you touched the staffs. A lot of energy was used in breaking down the mind-altering spell that was latched on the to the two of you. Don't worry you should be good in an hour, but that brings me to our next order of business: You need training. It's been close to two decades since either of you had used your abilities you’ll need to refine your skills since I doubt Clanweaver is going to back down.”

“W-What do you propose?” asked Judy, holding her head in slight pain.

“I train Wilde while Finnick trains you, Sly and Lucky will be around if they’re needed. From today we have four days before docking, so in this time let's get you up to speed in magic use. Four days for 20 years of experience… well, I’ve certainly had easier tasks but this is far from the hardest thing I’ve done. So whaddya say, we got a deal?”

It wasn't a hard choice, “deal.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nick and Judy are siblings, what?! Who would've guessed that?... well, the prologue laid it out for us.
> 
> Anyway: Wilde and Hopps were "reunited", some of Finnick's background was revealed, and Shadow is going to teach them magic! Isn't that exciting? FunFact: Tai Chi Chuan is what the creators of _Avatar: The Last Airbender_ based their water bending off of, so that can give you a nice visual of how Elementalists work here in this world- they're physical in a sense.
> 
> For anyone who gets lost in what Nick and Judy say: Nick refers to his parents as Mother and Father, Judy refers to her parents as Mama and Papa- so when either refers to their aunt and uncle they're talking about the other's parents.
> 
> And with that out of the way, I would like to pose two questions: What is Shadow and where is he from? I know some of you will find it odd that he talks about Nick and Judy like entities- as if he referring to them, but not the ones we know specifically. Why is that?
> 
> And secondly: What do you think of Sly and Lucky and who do you think they are? ( _I'm curious ;)_ )
> 
> Please comment, I would love to hear what you guys think and if you have any questions for me, ask them, and i'll try to answer them without ruining anything for the future.
> 
> See you all September 15th!


	12. 11- The fros of Learning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Late update, from my perspective, but here you go guys! It's finally done! And almost _9,500_ words!
> 
> Mentions of sigils later in the chapter, here's what they look like (Credit to the artists): [Water Sigil](http://thesigilwitch.tumblr.com/post/135229089829/elemental-sigil-water-this-sigil-is-one-of-four)  
> [Earth Sigil](http://thesigilwitch.tumblr.com/post/135229193074/elemental-sigil-earth-this-sigil-is-one-of-four)  
> [Air Sigil](http://thesigilwitch.tumblr.com/post/135228887989/elemental-sigil-air-this-sigil-is-one-of-four)  
> [Fire Sigil](http://thesigilwitch.tumblr.com/post/135229009449/elemental-sigil-fire-this-sigil-is-one-of-four)  
> [Lightning, Metal, and Ice Sigils](https://www.deviantart.com/mistress-darkloki/art/Secondary-Elemental-Symbols-415082224)
> 
> Any mistakes, tell me, and I'll fix them!

Nick would be lying to himself if he wasn't a little nervous in casting magic after so long, but, at the moment, what was making him nervous was the fact Shadow had his staff in paw, “Is there a reason I’m not using the staff?”

“Yes,” began Shadow as he stuck it in his coat, “if I’m going to guess your father didn't want you using it until you understood the basics of Illusion Magic.”

“But I know the basics.”

“And how long has it been since you touched up on those lessons?”

Silence, “that's what I thought. No staff until you can cast without collapsing. Now, from what I've read up on, Illusion magic is only as powerful as the Magician’s ‘strength’ and imagination, so why don't we start off with something simple?” The young wolf rolled up his sleeves, Wilde doing the same, as he cupped his paws together, “I want you to make a rock.”

“A rock?”

“Yes, a rock. Constructs are an Illusionists most important asset, they allow the caster to fool those around them that something exist when it doesn't. Starting off small should allow your body to get used to casting as we continue the lessons, okay?”

He nodded, “okay,” he answered, mimicking his position.

“Good, now listen to me: I want you to focus onto the image of a rock smooth, oval-shaped, and grey. Once you have that image in mind i want you to focus your energy into your paws and utter ‘petra’. Watch,” after getting more comfortable the wolf closed his eyes and slowed his breathing. They snapped open as he glared into his paws and spat, “ _Petra!_ ” from his lips. A violet etched into the air between his paws and began rising up, leaving a similarly colored outline in its wake which began to form into the rock Shadow described. After a few seconds the rock fully formed dropped in the cup, allowing him to pluck it out and reveal it to his student, “See? Easy, now you try.”

Nick nodded as he copied the actions of his teacher’s. He found it quite… pleasing and comfortable in trying to cast. He was a little upset on what his Aunt had done to him and his sister, but he knew it was only to protect the both of them.

When Wilde opened his eyes and focused on his paws, “ _Petra!_ ” A similar violet circle- just brighter- formed in the air between and started rising, a construct began to take shape…

Until it flickered and came apart.

The fox’s shoulders slumped.

The wolf chuckled, “No worries Captain, that's to be expected. We just need to keep at it to shake the rust off your core. Again.”

And again he did, over and over for almost three hours. For a quarter of that time Wilde struggled to keep the construct from breaking, but with some helpful tips from Shadow- _“You’re pouring too much energy at once, it's a small object you only need a small portion.”_ \- They were finally able to get the construct to fully realize.

Only if it looked right.

Over the next hour and a half the rocks he formed come out too jagged, too large, not the right color, etc. It frustrated the vulpine like no other, and one is frustrated they tend to get a little irrational.

And an irrational Magician tends to overexert themselves for no reason. Shadow lectured about the importance of control and balance.

Once he calmed down his tries began to come closer and closer to what he wanted, but still weren't exactly correct. Shadow noticed this, “You have to let it come naturally Captain, you can't force it to be what you want. You’re getting closer, but it’s still not right; Remember what I taught you- breath, center your mind, and focus on what it is you want to create.”

With his paws still cupped Nick closed his eyes once again… but something unexpected happened.

As the young wolf’s attention was fixated on Wilde the wolf himself began to take note of the construct forming without any prompt. Observing the formation Shadow took note that this attempt was reacting differently. Glancing up to see the fox’s eyes still closed he watched as smaller faint circle began to crosshatch, weaving the object to being, and once they finished there lay a smooth oval shaped grey rock in Wilde’s paws. Wilde opened his eyes, ready to cast, and was promptly surprised by what lay in his grasp.

Shadow smirked, “I guess you got a handle on it after all.”

“B-But I didn't… I didn't even-”

“Magic, from what I read, doesn't always need a chant or phrase to be uttered. Every path has slightly different rules, but the constant is that some spells take less prompting than others. Illusionists have to think on their feet when summoning constructs so they don't always have time to talk, does that make sense?”

“Y-Yeah, it does.”

“Good! Now let's see if we can move on to something bigger…”

_____

The sun was only beginning to wane, though there was still plenty of daylight left before it really got dark. Not wanting to disturb those going about their daily workings, Finnick and Judy located themselves on the forecastle deck- near the front- away from everyone else. The desert fox had laid out a silver dish and poured a pitcher into it, “unlike the other paths, Elementalists have to most often than not use what is around us to our advantage, we- other than fire and a few chaos spells- cannot create something from nothing. Trying to summon water in the desert is pointless, keeping a fire lit in the middle of the ocean is stupid, etcetera. We're going to go about this one at a time: I want you to lift up the water, like so,” Finnick stood at her side and lifted both paws. Deep blue intricate circles swirled to life on the back of his paws while a sigil for water glowed brightly on the front of the platter. The dish itself began to glow a faint sapphire as the water rippled and crest. In a simple fashion, the disturbed water rose and held itself a few feet above, but still sitting in, its resting origin. The liquid came down just as easily as it rose, falling still as settled in the dish.

He stared up at the rabbit, “Now you try it.”

The lapin was hesitant at first, but seeing her path of Magic in action brought and excited bounce to her stance. Repeating the steps of Finnick everything seems to come back as easily as one walks or breaths, the flow of power coursing through her being as it tied with the silver platter.

The water rose, if not little faster, than when Finnick did it, which brought a huge smile to Judy’s face, “Look, I’m doing it! I’m really doing it! This is _amazing!!!_ ” The bunny’s energy seems to spike the more excited she got.

The sigil burned brighter.

The glow around the dish followed suit, which had panic rise in the fennec, “Hopps,” he growls through his teeth, “calm down, I know this can be exciting but-”

“Exciting? This is _brilliant!_ I had forgotten how it _feels…_ the power, the action, all of it! I never knew this could be-”

The water blew up.

In their back and forth both failed to realize that the sigil burned gold before bursting with a small pulse, which caused the water to blast in every direction. Needless to say, the two were effectively soaked with how small they were. Judy let her arms fall to her side, hearing the fennec growling cause her to nervously chuckle, “Heh heh… oops?”

“Arg… You need to get it through your _thick bunny skull_ that you need to stay focused!”

“Okay! I’m sorry! I didn't mean to…”

“Tsk, yeah… Of course you didn't,” mumbled the fox as he grabbed some cloth and went to dry his fur, “listen, I don't know how much you remember of that night but when your family was attacked so was mine. I found out, years later, that Clanweaver spouted lies and deceit and sent mammals after us. My Uncle told me to run while he and the other member of my family tried to defend our home.”

The rust of his eyes dulled, “I was the only survivor.”

“Oh Finny… I’m-”

“Don't,” he shrugged off her comfort, “I don't need your pity. I only told you that to show you that even with nothing I still came out a decent Magician, but I can't do what most like me can. _You_ get to have that… you get people supporting you and help you grow, so don't go wasting it because you get a _little_ too excited. Reign those in if you ever want to be effective at casting, are we clear?”

The doe nodded, “Yes, we're clear.”

“Good,” he poured more water into the platter, “again.”

And again they went. Over and over moving down the line of the four main elements, working over different tests to see Judy’s strengths and weaknesses. Water, after some practice, was second nature to Judy, flowing it to and fro with ease; Earth held no troubles for the rabbit as she molded a rock out of dirt; and Air left no challenge for the doe, summoning small, rapid tornadoes that danced around her feet.

But now it was time to move on to the element Finnick feared, fire.

The fennec didn't fear it essentially but was worried for what might happen to his inexperienced ward if she tried wielding it. Nonetheless, knowledge over the four elements was mandatory for any Elementalist. He had to, but nothing said he couldn't warn her.

“You know what comes next, right?”

“Aye: Water, Earth, Air, now Fire.”

“But do you _understand_ what to do?”

Hopps had been bouncing on the balls of her feet in anticipation, but Finnick’s question brought her to a stop, “I don't understand.”

“Fire is one of the few spells an Elementalist learns where it doesn't require a source… We summon it ourselves. Think back almost three weeks ago, when we were almost hanged, you remember what Lucky did? She blasted fire straight from her paws,” quickly shaking out a paw, a ball of flames with the palm, “like so,” and promptly hurled it at one of the six targets he set up. He huffed before straightening out his clothes, “her’s was more of a bellowing stream, but you get my point. Fire on its own can be devastating, but with some control it can do wonders for the caster.”

“You’re about to try forming it for the first time… do you think you’re ready? ‘Cause if you ain’t we stop here and just refine on what we've gone over, I won’t be responsible for what happens to Nicky’s sister you hear me?”

Judy genuinely wasn't expecting this. These last five years she had watched as Finnick threaten to bite others faces off, pick fights with mammals immensely larger than him- and win-, and either be drunk, angry, or both. But once her mother’s spell was broken she remembered the sweet, albeit distant, young tod that was assigned to guard them, care for their well being. But even after so many years she, seeing through the gruff facade, saw someone who worried about those around him. And she was no different.

A smile tugged at her lips as fire- pun intended- burned in her eyes, “Trust me Finny, I can do this.”

“Alright, repeat _everything I do._ Like I said I won’t be responsible for anything that happens to you,” he tensed his right paw as a ring of scarlet manifested and a sigil of fire burned within. Kindling flames wrapped around it as he rolled it out and suspended it between the air of his paws, the flames glowing brighter. Once the fire bloomed brightly he cupped it before tossing it at the same target he did before.

Judy was mesmerized on how simple Finnick displayed everything, and even more when he started talking, “A fireball, something easy. If you aren't too careful with how much of your reserves you put in then you could _literally_ burn up. Work through this _step by step._ ”

Taking a few deep breaths she steadied her paws. Tensing a paw she watched as a similar ring form with an identical sigil, held it between her paws, and watched as the flames burned bigger than Finnick’s.

Her chest began to hurt.

Panic rose at the increasing pain, _‘No no no no no! This- This can't be happening! I can't… I can't…’_

_‘No.’_

_‘I just got my family back, I’m not losing it now!’_ Her thoughts echoed with a fury. From where Finnick was standing he saw intricate circles of more advanced, suppressing glyphs glowed to life on the back of her paws, their merlot coloring was drowned out by the fires but no less effective. The flames warped and flickered as they were pushed inward, only dulling slightly.

His maw hung open as Judy grabbed her creation and launched it as the already charred target, effectively obliterating it.

“Huh… didn't expect that…” Deserttail looked up at her, “how’d you do that?”

She cocked her head, “Do what?”

“Whaddya mean- You know what? Doesn't matter. Let's just keep working at it until you get a better hang of it…” He snorted, “nice first try though.”

_____

/p>

Night soon crested overhead, so Wilde and a few crew fetched some lanterns for them so him and Shadow could continue their lessons. As the pilot lights were lit Nick stepped back, “Okay, so what’s next?”

“Well you have a grasp of imaging and you can forge medium to large sized objects, so I guess we should move on to believability.”

“Believability?”

“Yeah, out of all of the constructs you’ve made did _any of them_ feel real?”

His question was answered with silence.

“Did _any of them_ look solid?”

More silence.

“Did _any of them_ have weight to them?”

Again, more silence.

“That's what I thought. Here look,” Shadow flicked his paw to summon a construct circle, a wooden box left in its wake, “go up to that and tell me what you think of it.” Wilde did as he was told: the wood felt rough, but not too rough; In attempting to lift the box he took note it was pretty hefty; and there wasn’t a single part of it that was translucent.

Then it clicked.

Shadow saw what he wanted in the tod’s eyes, “Now make your own and do the same inspection.”

Wilde created an identical box and did as he was told: see-through, smooth, and when he picked it up it was lighter than air.

“I want you to realize that forging the construct isn't enough, you have to believe that it is real or it won't come out right,” He held up a digit before the fox could say anything, “but this is where it could get dangerous. If one’s magic goes haywire then it could have varying results. Illusionist's create, well, illusions that are there to trick others, but you have to tow a thin line of illusion and reality and if one were to fall over to the darkness… you’ll forget what’s real. Use me as an anchor while we refine your constructs, okay?”

The fox was a little nervous after that. He didn't want to lose his mind- he just got his sister back!-, but he knew the canine was right. His magic had to be perfect if it was going to be any use to him, “Yeah okay, let's do it!”

_____

Blackened waves crashed against the ship as the stars burned brightly above. A calming night for what was otherwise a hectic day. Judy had refined her techniques with the four elements: she was loose and fluid with Water, sturdy and tough with Earth, flowy and light with Air, and forward and relentless with Fire. Everything was going her way.

Now came the hard part- as Finnick put it.

Finnick explained that _nature_ was an Elementalist’s best friend if controlled properly. Manipulation of plants and such allowed for many options for offence, defence, and support: shields, long range attacks, traps, etcetera. It all depended on the energy you channeled into the earth you got varying results.

Finnick himself couldn’t bend their will, but he read up about it enough to, at least, teach it basically. He had laid out various pots that held seeds- they collecting many things on the mainlands, “Well I can't show you this myself, but all I want you to do is channel your lifeforce energy into the ground and-”

“Finnick, relax, I got this,” taking a deep breath before leveling her vision onto the pots, “my parents loved gardening… I remember them doing this all the time.”

Looking over the pots she imagined exactly what she wanted. Crouching down she placed her paws against the hardwood surface of the ship, a neon green aura surrounding them. As the light spread over the pots intricate designed circles laid at the base, the doe shut her eyes and focused- all noise other than her was blocked out, “ _Crescere!_ ” The word echoed in her mind as she spoke it, and a familiar warm glow rested in her core.

Deserttail couldn't tear his eyes away as the pots of soil began sprouting the various flowers he planted, but something strange occurred. While blooming, the sigil for Life- a decorated half moon symbol- seared onto the front of the pots and the flowers began sprouting into bouquets. As the light faded, and Judy stood back up, she effectively lit up with happiness as the result of what she had done in front of her.

Completely perplexed Finnick ran a paw through his head fur, “Well… Looks like we found your affinity.”

“Affinity?” It was Judy’s turn to be confused.

“Yeah, an affinity. It’s what you call a set of spells within the same family that a Magician has no trouble casting. How do you feel right now? Nature can take a lot out of some at times.”

Hopps assessed her being and how she was feeling after growing the plants, and by all means should’ve been tired but… she _didn't,_ “I… feel fine, better than fine I think I’m more energized than when we started!”

“Well then, guess we finally found something that won’t cause destruction around you,” he was almost sent flying by how hard Judy punched him. Picking himself up he looked back at the bunny, “Magicians can, usually, have more than one affinity, but for now let's get this down first.”

_______________

Wilde and Hopps now found themselves on the third day of their abridged magic training, and so far everything was looking up. The second day focused on refining what they were already taught while developing their skills. Wilde, with the help of Shadow, lengthened the time frame of all of his constructs while allowing himself to form more than one at a time as well as creating more obscure concepts. Judy worked on control and balance as she developed a fighting style of sorts that worked around her small stature. Both were now beginning to feel more comfortable with wordless casting, which was good on their part- wouldn’t want your enemy to know what you were summoning!

Only partly cloudy, the day was still beautiful as ever as Shadow stood with Wilde on the stern once again, “I have to say I am very impressed with your progress these last two days, not only have you grown used to the use of magic in a short time but you have effectively- in a way ‘mastered’- a good chunk of the utilities at your disposal.”

Wilde’s chest puffed out in pride upon hearing that.

“But,” he deflated only slightly, his muzzle still held in a tight smirk, “constructs aren’t the only tool you have to use. An Illusionist's entire shtick is tricking their enemy into seeing something that really isn’t there… and what better way to do that than with _Mirages!_ ”

“Mirages?” His quirked brow was left unanswered when Shadow hollered for Lucky, the rabbit almost bouncing up the stair to meet them.

“Lucky here will be our Onlooker.”

“Onlooker? What’s that mean?” The bunny questioned as she tilted her head.

“A fancy name meaning you’ll be a pair of untainted eyes. For today’s lesson Nicholas,” calling the captain out by name, “we will be working on mirages, or hallucinations are they are more commonly called. So far we've been working on the physical half of your magic; now it's time to work on the mental half. Mirage is a term used for meaning that you, personally, are seeing something that isn’t really there. A good Illusionist should be able to target someone and effectively distracting them with whatever they’re showing them. Nobody else should see what you manifest if you’re doing it properly, Lucky is here to determine the effectiveness of your casting.”

Nodding in understanding, both tod and doe were understandably excited for what was to come, “So,” Wilde began, “where do we start?”

The red wolf rolled up his left sleeve and held out his arm, “Direct contact with the mammal strengthens the connection, allowing for more effective spellcasting,” Wilde mimicked his action and gripped the forearm of his teacher, “Good, now to allow the magic a sort of pathway- for a beginning crutch at least- you need to utter ‘Liga hae duae voluntates’, which mean Bind these Two Wills.”

Following Shadow’s instructions, speaking the phrase verbatim, violet colored chains wrapped around both mammal’s arms both fading, “Nice work, now I need you to say this spell,” reaching into his pocket and pulling out a slip of paper he displayed it in front of Wilde before the fox took it, “and once complete I want you to think of something, anything, that you would want to show me. Give it a try.”

Nodding, the red fox looked down at the spell, “ _Ostende quid ego video, Revelare ad eos quid me desiderium... clouding Perceptionis!_ ” A mauve magic circle etched onto the back of the fox’s hand, signifying the spell’s effect was at the ready. Thinking for a moment he came up with something simple to see.

Instantly Shadow caught something fluttering at the corner of his eye, and when he turned to see what it was a smile tugged at his muzzle: a monarch butterfly.

The bug flew around for awhile before others began flying around, effectively becoming a kaleidoscope. Hairstreaks, Coppers, Skippers, Bluewings, and many other fluttered about the deck with intense fury. In awe of what he was seeing, the young wolf spotted a Malachite Butterfly glide its way down and landed on the edge of his paw, tickling him as it walked across. Breathlessly laughing, Shadow was amazing at what he was seeing, “You certainly know how to start off strong Nicholas, very impressive!”

“Yeah I’m kinda shocked myself, I wasn't really expecting such a big turnout…”

“It's all in the power of your mind Captain, and I must say… very good first attempt. Now let's see if…” His words faded as he watched as Lucky’s eyes glowed brightly with wonder, attempting to catch a few of the insects in her own paws, “I guess you’ll have to focus a little bit more- Lucky!” Shouting, the wolf took a little glee in seeing the rabbit stiffen, “Am I to assume you see this?”

“Uh, y-yes Shadow I do, and I find this incredible! I’ve never seen so many in one place!”

“Can they interact with you?”

The doe flung her arms through the air, eliciting no reaction, “They don't seem to notice me when I move around, but if I stay completely still they do land of me.” 

“Can you feel them?”

“No Shadow I can't.”

“So you are able to see, but not completely interact. Hmm… it’s better than nothing so it's a good start. Judging by how strong the spell is right now, and the lack of fatigue in your body language tells me this might be an affinity of yours. Let's keep at it!”

_____

“Okay, now let's get interesting!” Finnick proclaimed with a toothy smile, “Chaotic Spells are fun to mess around with, but can be deadly if used improperly.” The fennec brought out the dummies from the first day and spaced them out, “Again, I can't use this branch myself but I’ve seen it in action to know how to teach it. As a base lesson, we’ll go over three different casts: Lightning, Metal, and Ice. Anything after that you’ll try on your own.”

Stepping back he took a swig of rum, the burning sensation soothing, before continuing, “We’ll start with Lightning. I want you to hold your paws, open, in front of you and shout ‘Fulgur Percusserit’. We’ll see how strong your attack is and good from there, okay?”

“Aye!” With a quick stretch, Judy did as she was told and started channeling her reserves, “ _Fulgur Percusserit!_ ” Expecting a small decorative circle, what she got was a huge, bright yellow ring- devoid of any other markings- about three-quarters of her size as a thundering bother of lightning zapped out and struck the dummy a few feet in front of her… rendering it to mire ash.

Knockback from the spell landed her on her rump, “Ow,” rubbing her sore backside Judy stood back up to ask Finnick what happened, but the fennec just ricocheted between her and the what used to be the dummy, “Finnick?”

He shook his head, placing paws on his hips, “Well aren’t you full of _fucking surprises…_ That's _definitely_ something I’ve never seen before.”

“What?”

“That level of power when executing that spell, normally newbies end up with only a spark when first attempting that. You… You cast with the strength of someone with _years_ experience. How…” The fennec seemed thoughtful, until something clicked with him, “Your ancestor of course, why didn't it occur to me sooner…”

“What about my ancestor?”

“Are you- Come on now Hopps! You see it don't you? You and your brother’s bloodlines are direct descendants of the original Elementalist and Illusionist, no diversion it's always been down the line. Next to inbreeding- which is fuckin’ disgusting- you two have the purest line to Doran and Gwendolynn.”

Judy had never really thought of it before. Her and Nick’s parents have always been close, their families living together for the last hundred years, so I guess to her it's always been this way. Having “pure” blood would certainly help out when casting magic, “Huh… never really thought about, but now that you mention it we sound pretty cool!”

“Ugh,” Finnick’s deep tones groaned as he rolled his eyes, “Nicky’s rubbing off on you. Whatever, let's try that again but don't destroy the dummy this time.” 

“Heh,” turning away nervously Judy resituated herself and got ready to cast once again, hopefully not knocking her ass this time.

_____

Night soon crested overhead for Shadow, Lucky, and The Captain and everything so far had gone smoothly. It had taken a few hours for Wilde to properly connect his Mirage to Shadow without Lucky being able to see but other than that his mirages became stronger and stronger. Over the course of this time, Nicholas had made small storm clouds, a barrage of other bugs, and the like. After a brief callback to the line of illusion and reality, Shadow had pushed Wilde to create more “interesting” mirages such as the floor dissolving into quicksand, the ship filling with water in a huge storm, and causing the wolf to go blind for a short moment. He had managed to shorten the spell for to Pervertitis, or Distort in English, which seemed more effective for the vulpine in his late 20’s.

After releasing the Bind Spell on the two of them- which had gone on and off for the past while- Shadow gave the captain a pat on the back, “You’re getting the hang of this Captain, I’m very proud of you!”

“Thanks,” he responded with a smirk and half-lidded eyes, “guess it's all in my blood.”

“Apparently, but now it's time for us to move on to something more… dangerous.”

“Dangerous? Whatever you got planned can't be any more harmful than you already have the Captain doing,” Lucky reasoned letting out a small snort, “He’s been doing pretty well so far.”

“Yes Lucky you are correct, but this next lesson will test the limits of Wilde’s mind- or more accurately how he handles _another’s mind._ ” The two seemed understandably confused, waiting for the canine to continue, “Like those who follow the path of the Shadow Caster they can cause mammals around them to fear, shrouding them in darkness where the mind runs rampant. An Illusionist has the ability to bring those aforementioned fears to life! Incapacitating them with whatever they are being shown. This type of magic is called _Ferens quis Metus,_ Bringing of one’s fears, or Fear Summoning for short. You invade the mind of a mammal and ‘Bring to life’ what they fear most, whether that's a phobia or another mammal or an abstract concept… that's what you bring to the surface.”

The Captain was shocked at what he might be able to do, as his father had never told him this when he was young, _‘Though he never got the chance,’_ the tod thought sadly.

Shadow continued, “Like before you’ll use me as a target for your casting.”

“What? No! Why would I ever do that?”

“Because, Nicholas, I am the only one strong enough to handle this without it causing immediate pain of sorts. I would never allow you to try this with anyone else on this ship, I am the only one you can use.”

“But-”

“No ‘buts’ Nicholas you have to master this one way or another,” Shadow stood back, “you’ve gotten better at casting from afar, especially with mental- type spells, so I want you to try it this time as well.”

Though he had a sly smirk on his face, on the inside he was freaking out! Invading someone’s mind wasn’t something he’d ever thought he’d do, but being an Illusionist that was all but a requirement. Mirages were easy, for the most part, but Fear Summoning seemed… unnatural.

But after taking a deep breath, he resigned himself to what he had to do. Protecting the ship and fighting Clanweaver he was gonna try to get any advantage he could get, “Alright, I’ll do it.”

“Perfect. I’m not gonna give you any instructions on this, I want to see if you can figure it out yourself.”

 _‘Comforting…’_ The russet fox pushed down all the nervousness he had in order to focus his mind. Closing his eyes, all the sound, expect his breathing, around him faded away, leaving only himself that he could sense… except there was someone there… Shadow. He could sense him, sense his mind, and there was something… dark behind it. He was being _drawn to it…_ and something inside of him wanted to get _closer…_ So why resist?

On the outside Shadow just stared as Wilde stayed unmoving, ÿou know, you don't have to worry about me. My mind isn’t as-”

It was all too fast for Shadow to register, all he saw was a crimson light in Wilde’s eye before he heard, “ _Crash…_ ”

_____

As past memories swirled around the wolf there was something he quickly realized: there were his _failures._ Every destroyed world, every collapsed city, every _family_ he failed to save… swirling around me and burning him from the inside out. He was left stunned and as tears fought to come out he pushed them back as hard as he could, “This isn't real… this isn't happening… this is all just Wilde and-”

_**“NOOOO!!!!!”** _

A raw scream forced Shadow to open his eyes and paralyze in fear. He had enough strength to force his head to turn… only to see the image of him holding someone he hadn’t seen in over a year, a gaping hole in the middle of his chest, “No…”

The scene was given sound, and only then did he let the tears fall.

_**“You… you made me stronger, even if you didn't realize it… you made me happy… you made me best that I could be…”** _

“Please no…”

_**“...we had the best of times…”** _

“Why this… a-anything but this…”

_**“I… I don't want or say goodbye…”** _

“P-Please… s-stop, I don't want to see this…” 

The scene shifted to the image of a humanoid dragon lying across a morgue table, golden chestplate bent and contorted, a similar gaping hole in his chest as a jar with what looked like a heart next to him.

_**“...I knew this would happen you stupid dragon… why couldn't you spend your last moments with me… family sticks together…”** _

Tears burned Shadow’s cheeks as he bowed down and held his head in his knees, trembling with regret and pain as the darkness set in, “Please… no more…”

_____

In the span of five seconds Lucky watched the mammal she admired when they travel, freeze, his eyes darken, and crumble into the ground while whimpering. What shocked her even more was it seemed that the captain was dead focused on him with a deep, ominous look on his face. He hadn’t moved in the last few seconds, but the dark air around him was creeping her out, “Captain, Captain can you hear me?”

His stare deepened.

“Captain I think you should stop.”

The air seemed to chill. He didn’t move. The whimpering continued.

“Captain, please, I think you should-” She froze in front of him when seeing the crimson etching in his left eye. The outer ring contained a diamond shape array that resembled a clock, and the inside had markings that curved and sharpened at the edges and all came together in an elegant, smooth design. There was something hypnotizing about it… and it sent a chill down Lucky’s spine.

She grabbed his arms and started shaking, “Captain! You need to stop!” It didn't take long for the design to shatter and he blinked back into reality.

“H-Huh, wha…” He gripped his head, almost falling to his knees.

While that seem to solve itself Lucky spun around and ran over to her friend, “Shadow! Are you okay?” The wolf raised his head, tear streaks staining his fur, eyes wide, “I.. I-I think so…” His heavy breathing concerned the bunny, but it was probably nothing to worry about.

As the canine sat up and propped himself against the raised railed he spoke, “Well… that was expected to say the least. How did you do that?”

Wilde kept looking at the ground, “I… I don't know, I just… did it. Everything was quiet when I noticed you and… latched on,” He turned his attention completely to the red wolf, “Who’s Storm?”

Shadow’s hackles raised, “What?”

“I just remember seeing blurry images, but a few things stuck to me… like names. So who is he?”

Shadow composed himself, “He’s… He _was_ my best friend. We had known each other since we were born, and he… helped me with a lot of things. Like helping others… but we- I got too full of myself. Got him killed.”

“I’m sorry Shadow, I didn't know.”

“It's quite alright Captain, was there anything else you ‘saw’?”

“The name… Drum.”

The young wolf sighed happily, “That's the name of my, adopted, older brother. When I help others he’s usually there to keep me out of trouble, _that_ doesn't usually pan out,” at this the canine laughed. Then a thought occurred, “you didn't happen… to see his species, did you?”

“Nope, just remember a name.” 

“Oh good,” he said low enough for him and Lucky to hear, “but I do have to say: that was fascinating! Other than emotionally crippling, you performed very well!”

“Are you sure? Çause I’m not completely sure if I did it right.” 

“No, you did. You showed me, albeit more abstractly, my fear: seeing those close to me die. You just used my own memories to do that!”

The wolf stood up and stretched, “And you did it without a single problem, it seems your affinities are tied to the mind. Let's see what else you can do.”

_____

The sun was beginning to set and Finnick, even if he won’t express it fully, was very impressed by Hopps’ progress. After more use of Lightning, her magic began to calibrate to a less _devastating_ degree. Judy could cast one handed and shortened the phrase to ‘Perc’ for quick casting.

Her training more Metal, however, wasn't as smooth as she would’ve liked it. It never contorted the way she wanted and would fight her if she tried lifting it. Though frustrating for many hours she got it to do some of the things she wanted, but not all. Foreseen in Finnick’s eyes, but a definite defeat in hers, “Trust me Hopps, Metal can be a fickle thing. Helpful tip: it’s just refined Earth, learned that when I was shitfaced drunk and got myself locked in a cupboard- don't ask.”

“Time to move on, though, and I believe Ice probably won't fight you as much. Sly!” The baritone fox shouted as the golden-eyed tod came over.

“You rang?”

“You use Ice Magic, right? Do you think you can show Hopps how?”

Lighting up, a twinkle held firm in his eyes as a smile graced his muzzle, “Why yes, as it just so happens Ice is what I’m best at,” he straightened out his clothes as he stared at the remaining dummies, “Listen close Hopps because I’m only going to say this once: Ice isn't nothing.”

“What?” The bunny knitted her eyebrows, “What does _that_ mean?”

“Exactly as it sounds like, Ice isn't nothing. Ice comes from you cooling the moisture around you to the point of its crystallization,” as to demonstrate he held up a paw as a light azure blue ring glowed with the ice sigil burning bright within- boxy and sharp, but a slight roundness to it- on his wrist. Gradually ice started crystalizing over the hairs of his paw, and as it gathered up it solidified and formed an ice glove of sorts with extended claws from his digits, “And as you can see there are many applications to this,” stalking up to one of the remaining three targets Sly brought his paw up and swiped. Things were still for a moment until the head of the dummy slid diagonally in multiple pieces before thudding against the ground.

Walking back over he still held an indifferent smirk, “Simply put, if used properly then you can do some creative things. Remember, though, that because it is still ice then if the magic starts recoiling them it might start freezing _you_. Encasing something until you lose all feeling of what it encased, then… say ‘Bye Bye!’ to whatever it was because you’ll have to amputate.” 

“Did… did that happen to you?” Judy asked, curious to what the fox might’ve lost.

“Me? No, but I came close when I was still learning. And one more piece of advice,” holding up his paw, showing off the ring and sigil, the ring itself switched from azure to red and the glove began to steam, “Using ice on yourself you want a way to easily remove it so combining it with the use of fire gets to change from one state of matter to the other, going from a solid to a gas,” while he was talking the ice started to “melt” until nothing was left other than his naked paw, “it can be your friend or it could ruthlessly attack you without remorse. It all depends on you,” he punctuated by poking a digit into Judy, “Now you try!”

“Wait, what?!” The rabbit was completely thrown off, “Wait, hold on, you didn't show me how to use it!”

“Yeah I did I’m pretty sure that I just gave you a demonstration.”

“But that doesn't- You have to-”

“I said I was only going to say it once and I did, Not my fault you weren't listening and you were completely mesmerized by my outstanding skill,” he crossed his arms while tilting his head, “I know I’m amazing, but that shouldn’t stop you from learning.”

“But… But… Ugh! You’re as frustrating as my brother!”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

Ignoring the fox she turned her attention to the dummies. Her nerves were getting to her, _‘What if I can't do it? What if I mess up badly? What if-’_ Those destructive were halted in their tracks as something… _cooled_ her mind.

The air around her became frigid and, surprisingly, Judy didn't mind it. Her fingers started tingling on her left paw as she reared back.

For Sly he watched as three identical markings- the one he made- ran up Hopps’ arm in three distinct sizes. Cooling air swirled around it and when she threw it towards the targets… let's just say he was glad that he grabbed Finnick out of the way, if not then the two of them would’ve been encased in the barrage she sent over. The cast curved in a smooth move formation as it was at least six inches thick and five feet high, icicle spikes protruding from the top.

The fox began to laugh. _Hard._

With what just happened and the absolutely adorable look of shock on the doe’s face really made it for the tod. He would’ve kept going if the fennec in his arm didn't bite down on his paw, causing him to drop him.

As Deserttail stood back up, dusting himself off, he just looked at the shocked bunny, “What the fuck rabbit?!”

“I-I didn't mean to do that!”

“But you did! God…” he sighed, “why can't you just be a simple Elementalist, you just _had_ to be a damn **Chaos Forger**.”

“A Chaos what?”

“A Chaos Forger, that's what you are. Magicians have names for those who specialize in certain branches or spells. For example, most would call me a Desert Guardian with my ornate skill to manipulate Earth like putty. You, on the other hand, seem to have a knack for the goddamn Chaos Arts: Lightning, Ice, and probably others like Storms, DarkFire, Blood Bending, etcetera. The Nature thing’s probably of your genetics ‘cause you said your parents were good at it,” rolling his eyes and he growled slightly at the implication of what she was capable of, “Just don't be stupid, alright?! You’ll probably want to do a lot at once, but I swear to whatever god there is I will kick your ass if something happens to you!”

“Aw Finny you do care!”

“Shut it!”

_______________

Sun rising over a new day, nobody would even know it was special- other than Hopps and Wilde of course. Today was the day The Jolly Arrow would be making its way into the port of their destination in a few hours, but today was also their “final day” of training. The day they had their staffs in hand.

Neither of them realized that the giant crystals at the top had gained the hue color of their magic, purple for Nicholas and green for Judy, until today so it was a pleasant surprise.

The two of them had been separated for the entire time and standing next to one another was something exciting for the both of them, though only one was showing it on the outside. They stood in front of Shadow, with Sly and Lucky at his side, and with Finnick standing off to the side.

“Okay,” the wolf finally spoke, “the two of you have progressed at such an exceptionally rapid pace and I can't help but feel proud of the both of you,” the vulpine and lapin glanced at each other in glee, “but now you have the basics out of the way it's time for you to learn some offensive and defensive skills.”

“Is that why you handed our staffs back?” Judy asked.

“Yes, because as your magic has grown accustomed to your bodies using the staffs should be no problem now. They don't strengthen your casting, but they do give you a better conduit at times… and they look cool,” he waited for their laughing to die down, “Now something that every Magician need to have is an attack of some sort that doesn't use their path completely: Energy Constructs and Power Blasts. A Power Blast is just that, a surge of energy blasted in a certain direction, like so,” The red wolf took a few steps back- on the main deck- as Sly and Lucky pulled out their respective wands and a steady stream of red and gold energy clashed with one another.

Both tod and doe watched in awe as their companions held their wands strong, neither giving a single inch, “Power Blasts can be tiring if held for long periods, or if given off in single powerful bursts, but other than that they just a clash of wills if they meet,” as if on cue Sly flicked his flicked his wrist sharper as his stream overtook some area and pushing his opponent back. Doing that a few more times it seemed as if he had something over Lucky until determination burned in the rabbit’s eyes and her stream overwhelmed Sly and knocking him on his ass.

The fox still smirked, “Got to hand it to you Cottontail I actually thought I had you that time.”

“Well keep dreaming Slick.”

“Anyways,” the canine interrupted, “that's how Power Blasts work. Energy Constructs are a little different,” after putting her wand away she waved her hand through the air and three light based arrow points, as long and thick as a fox’s muzzle, emerged, “If you couldn’t tell these kinds of attacks were based off the Forges ones of the Light Summoner path can make, but they were developed for any Magician to use. You can make at minimum three and maximum six, and they’ll usually adjust their color to the user but I showed these to these two only last night. They’re good for quick, long ranged attacks for those who don't have much in the way of tangible offence- lookin’ at you Captain-, but if you were to channel said energy you could use it to enhance a weapon of choice,” Lucky unsheathed her longsword and the two stared intently as the arrows flowed down and not only made the blade longer but extended its edge width by a few inches, the augment glowing white.

The rabbit took the improved sword and sliced through with ease a few watermelons from the ship's pantry, leaving beautifully sliced triangles to serve amongst the crew; which Sly gladly did with every onboard. 

After the attacks the augment melted away and leaving the base sword behind, “It will only last like that for a short amount of time, how much I’m not sure. I do know that in their base forms you can attack for… 90 minutes max, and that's without using your other magics. With them… I’d say you got a good 30-40 minutes. So make it count!”

The fox and bunny nodded as he explained that saying “Forth” or “Porro” should summon these attacks and how many that form relies on how many they think they’ll need. For the time being, however, Shadow wanted them to summon only three.

However, the moment they were summoned Wilde’s seem to take the shape of jagged crystal shards and turned black with red and magenta glowing outlines. Hopps, on the other hand, formed into Broadhead arrow tips the size of Lucky’s but they stayed white. Nobody knew why that happened, but it didn't really matter to Shadow, “Great! Now let's see if you can hit some moving targets: Captain, you’re up. Try something flashy!” Was all he said before tossing a medium sized rock into the air. 

As it flew up high Wilde smirked before spinning his staff around in his left paw and flicking rapidly to the side before slamming the top down in front of him. The shards responded, zipping through the air in an erratic fashion and piercing the rock from the side before the final shard sent it shattering into dust from above.

Whistling, Shadow stared on, “I like it, well done. Hopps, your turn.”

Tossing another rock up, Judy watched it for a moment before grinning with enthusiasm. Her arrowheads turned candy red, yellow, and metallic before gesturing forward with her staff in her right paw. The yellow head tore through the air like lightning while the red head caught fire and followed suit. Piercing at the same time, the rock was shocked with electricity and engulfed in flames before the metallic head shot off and tore through the center.

As the dust particles fell Shadow was at a loss of words, “Well then… that was pretty good. Even though I just introduced this to you, you both seem comfortable with it.”

“We are.” “Isn't that hard to understand.”

“Well if you too have this down already then why don't we move on to Power Blasts,” a very predator-like smile graced Shadow’s muzzle, causing the two to shiver a bit, “then you should have no issue going against me!”

_____

Docking the ship in the city’s port, the crew began disembarking on this ever bustling day. Mammals of all kinds were going about their business, so no one paid mind to the pirate crew that had just come into their ports. Nicholas Wilde took a long, deep breath, sighing with a smile on his face, “Oh how I’ve missed it here…” He spun around to address his crew, “Ladies and Gentlemammals, I welcome you to the city where anyone can be anything… Welcome to Zootopia!” The crew cheered and hollered while Shadow held a longing smile and Sly and Lucky looked at one another in anticipation.

“Sly we're finally here! Isn't this exciting?”

“Sure is Lucky,” he panned around to see various men and women dressed muted, but nonetheless elegant, dresses or simple tail coats and vests, “it's a bit different then what we're used to, but it's still the city we know and love.”

“Oh?” Wolford’s ear perked up hearing that, “You’ve been here before?”

“Well, it's a bit complicated but… this is home to us,” Lucky answered before wrapping around Sly’s arm, “it's been a long time, so we're both excited to see if anything’s changed.”

“Oh yes, _ecstatic,_ ” the tod forced a grinned while simultaneously glaring at his partner.

Before anything else could be said the captain spoke once again, “Now I know some of you are a bit miffed by the equipment we have on board,” low murmuring and agreement could be heard amongst the crowd, “but rest assured everything will be fine,” He reached into his coat and tossed a sack full of gold and silver over to a female pig, “If you need anything for you or the ship, and only important things, follow Caroline to your heart's content, but before anyone leaves,” he parted the crowd and removed his staff from the holster, he fashioned out of leather, on his back. Tapping it against the ground, The Jolly Arrow was enveloped in a glow of purple before completely shifting into an altered brigantine ship that held no resemblance to the ship they lived on. Promptly walking over and, cutting his paw with a dagger, and wiping some blood against the railing, “Remember that _this_ is our ship, and you get confused I’m also pretty sure that this is Port 17, everyone understand?” Cheers once more, “Good, now off you go you mangy mutts,” he spat with a smile.

Soon enough their crowd began to disperse leaving only Shadow, his friends, Hopps and Wilde, and Finnick, “Brilliant,” clapping his paws together Wilde started looking around, “guess it's time to hit the streets, don't you think? Why don't I’ll give you three a tour of the city? At this point, I know it like the back of my paw.”

“Sure Captain, sounds fun.”

“Alrighty then,” he glanced at his smaller companion, “you comin’ Fin?”

“W-What? Oh, um, no. I was gonna… find a pub close and have few drinks.”

“Daylight drinking? Well, I guess you wouldn’t be you if you didn't… okay then, well see you probably in a few hours. Stay out of trouble,” the tod crouched down and held firm the fennec’s shoulder, “and stay safe, you hear? Don't want you getting hurt,” the twinkle in his eye had the desert fox smirking.

“Yeah yeah, dontchu be worryin’ about me,” he said in his usual gruff tone, “go have fun, I’m pretty sure there are mammals here that don't know how much of a bastard you can be. Go fix that.”

Barking with joy Wilde slapped his… Finnick on the back, “Now that’s what I like to hear!”

_____

_“...stay safe, you hear? Don't want you getting hurt...”_

“Bah! Why… Why he gotta say somthin’ like that…” It had been a few hours since Wilde and them left to explore the city, leaving Finnick to drink his conflicted mind away in a pub named Broken Hook some blocks away from the port. That small tidbit had been playing in his head over and over ever since he got there, and at first, he thought getting enough drinks in him would quell the twisting pit in his stomach.

It didn't work. In fact, I might’ve made it worse.

Even after Wilde’s memories returned Finnick still felt like he had to keep his distance from the fox, not wanting to make anything awkward. They had shared a few laughs between then and now, but it still rubbed him the wrong way. He had _royally_ screwed up, and he had only himself to blame: he didn't tell him the truth of his magic, he didn't fulfil his duties as a guardsman on many occasions, and all the time he fell in love with Nicholas who, at the time, barely remembered him while he knew _everything_ about him.

Fishing, albeit clumsily, into the pockets he pulled out the cold metal the moment he felt it. He held the stained and damaged golden ring in front of him, rolling it between his fingers. He sighed, defeated, “Ah fucked up… fucked up _hard._ ”

Anger burned in his chest as downed the rest of his whiskey before signaling for a refill, “Of all the stupid… Ah don’ know what I’m gonna do…”

Even with the big ears of his dulled senses didn't pick up the shuffling of chairs and doors flapping, “He won’ forgive me… _I_ wouldn’ even fucking forgive me…” Downing his, now seventh, a cup of whiskey he still wanted more, “bartender, more!”

“I’m sorry to say, but the bartender is on break at the moment.”

Crashing out of his stool, Finnick shoved the ring back in his pocket when the gravelly voice filled his ears.

“Might want to be more careful there _fox_ , you wouldn't want to hurt yourself know would you?”

Stumbling back to his feet, he tried to burn holes in the scarred lion on the other side of the bar, “ _Michael…_ ”

“Wonderful to see you as well Guardsmen, I had thought you all but perished that night, but I guess I was wrong. Seeing you last time was a shock…” A predatory smile blessed the apex’s muzzle, “but now I see it as _an opportunity!_ ”

Finnick couldn't quite get the cap off his pouch smoothly, which gave Clanweaver plenty of time to see what he was doing. In a blink the room grew dark and tendrils shot out of the ever-expanding shadows, wrapping around the fennec’s small frame, “ah ah ah, we can't have that…” coming around Michael took one of his claws and cut the shash and tossing the bag away, “if only you aren't drinking your sorrows away then maybe would’ve put up a fight.”

The bindings tightened as the tod tried to speak, “W-What… w-what d-do you w-want?”

“I’m sure they already told you, but I want power… and normally I wouldn't settle for less,” his eyes practically glowed in the darkness, “but something tells me you’ll do _just fine…_ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot to unpack, huh?
> 
> Tell me your thoughts and questions in the comments below, I love to read them!
> 
> Schedule update: College might get in the way of updating this story, as I also have another to work on, so this will be strictly bi-weekly. Sorry, no chapter next week.
> 
> See you all September 29th!


	13. 12- What is taken...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's that chapter you've all been waiting for! (In the sense that I'm updating- I have no Idea if you were bouncing in anticipation for it...)
> 
> Not much to say other than I felt really bad about what I do here... but hey, I'm a Writer feeling bad about thing usually means its pretty good. Sometimes... you guys can be the judge of that.
> 
> If you see any mistakes, tell me, and I'll fix them!
> 
> So enough stalling, let's get right into it!

Zootopia wasn’t like anything Lucky had ever seen! The buildings were simple and blocky while also being decorative and outstretching. Mixtures of brick, stone, and granite gave the city a cooling feel that still bad a pop of color to it. The size of the structure varied as they made it further and further in and each one never looked exactly the same, always with some sort of variant to them.

It was beautiful!

And she said as much, “Zootopia is _beautiful!_ The designs of the buildings and their detail… it's all incredible!”

“I assume you’re liking it here?” Wilde asked through a chuckle.

“Oh yes! Very much so!”

“If you think this is amazing then just you wait until we get to Savannah Central,” the fox added before taking off into a sprint.

Shocked, the three didn't know what to do until they saw Hopps taking after him. Grinning to each other, they mimicked her actions. They all bobbed and squeezed through the crowds as their fast reaction times had them jolting down alleyways and bustling main road as they followed their guide. Rhinos, Tigers, Wolves, Pandas, Elephants, Mice, Weasels, and many other other mammals they passed, and each one different from the last. The city, not one mammal looked exactly the same.

Nicholas slowed down after passing by a few shops, and as everyone caught up he spun around to greet them, “Hope everyone enjoyed that little taste of exercise, especially you Carrots you seem a little big for a doe,” that earned him a slap. Once the stinging faded he continued, “ah… thank you for that dear sister, I was still feeling a bit sleepy before that. Now then: Shadow, Lucky, Sly… Welcome to Savannah Central!”

The reflective shine of the watering hole in the center of the pristine park had drawn Lucky to it. The park was bigger than she remembered and was more… mush, for the lack of a better word. She liked it. 

Sly, on the other hand, was drawn to the shops that very well lined the edges of the plaza- other than the City Hall and Police Station of course. Everything, to him, was so much more simple than what he was used to, but it was nice in a way. He did spot a few signs that displayed “No Chompers”, but what would he have expected during this time.

Shadow just took in everything in: The shops, the park, the mammals… everything caught his eye and formed a smile on his face. It was all so familiar to him, but at the same time different. A nice different, “It's fantastic Captain, what a beautiful place to spend our evening.”

For the next while they explored around, Wilde listing off historical facts of the area as they tour around accompanying streets. After a bit, they stopped at a predator tolerant shop and picked up some bread, rice, and potatoes for them to eat.

They spent the afternoon in Savannah Central Park, admiring the scenery and enjoying the bustling movement of everyday city life. A nice change of pace, but after hours of telling jokes and swapping stories Judy noticed how quiet her brother got.

And she knew what was bothering him, “Do you want to talk about it?”

He snapped out of his mild trance and quickly threw on a smirk, “Huh? What do you mean, talk about what?”

Scoffing at his flimsy deflect she rolled her eyes, “I could tell you were off even before we had our memories back now it’s just sibling intuition. You’re thinking about Finnick, aren't you?”

Shadow and his friends cut their conversation short as they honed in on Wilde. The captain darted between everyone, forcing his smirk more and more, before dropping his facade, “Okay… I’ll talk if you really want me to: Yes, I’m thinking about Fin.”

“And you don't know how you feel about him.”

“Got it in one sis. I…” Sighing, he knitted his brows as he forced his eyes shut, “I just don't know what to do. I mean I never _really_ stopped having feelings for him, but him lying to me about being a Magician… It just broke the straw on the camel’s back. I mean that's _huge!_ How could he keep something like that from me, but the problem’s that I _already knew…_ I just didn't remember.”

He stared intently at his sister, “It’s like I _want_ to be upset, but every excuse I make up there’s a memory now to combat it. It’s two sets of perceptions: on one paw the man I fell in love with kept something huge from me and didn't trust me enough to tell me, but on the other paw I’ve he’s had magic since we were young, playing around just the three of us. And I don't know what to think anymore…”

Everyone around understood his dilemma: Finnick kept his magic from him, but it’s the fact he already knew that dampens any upset he geld towards the tod.

Luckily Judy knew what to do, “Well, I can't tell you how to feel, dear brother, but I can give you some advice: You’re a Dumb Fox.”

“And… how does that help?”

“Let me finish: You’re a Dumb Fox… you already have the answer. You can't excuse what Finnick did, but you can’t fault him for it. There were so many circumstances between the last two times you two saw each other, so I can understand why it may seem complicated. So let me asked: Do you still love him?”

“Carrots-”

“Answer me, do you still love him?”

He sighed, “Yes.”

“Then there you go,” patting him on the back she gave him a longing smile, “You’ve talked through this before with him, correct?” He nodded, “Then keep talking about it, I would hate to see you throw away a chance at a happy future because of something he didn't have control over. Now stop being stupid,” she finished by smacking him, albeit playfully.

He knew his sister was right so the next time he saw Finnick he’d talk to him: No distractions, just talking.

_____

The sun was beginning the set when they made there way back to the docks. They spotted the pub Finnick went to, as it was one of the few that were around, and walked in.

The sight of an establishment completely void of life, with things abandoned, left a cold pit in everyone’s stomach, “Finnick? You around?” The group split up and searched around, finding nothing of note of the fennec’s presence. Meeting back up they saw Nicholas on the ground, trembling ever so slightly, “Nick? Are you alright?” Hopps approached as he didn't respond, “Nick?”

“F-Fin…”

“What about Finnick?”

He whipped his arm out to reveal his sand pouch broken strap and all, “H-He’s been taken…”

“How-”

“ _He never leaves anywhere without this!_ ” The roar of Nicholas’s voice was disturbing, to say the least. The fox rarely loses his cool, and the last time he held this kind of fury n his eyes he found out Finnick was a Magician.

He stormed over shoving the pouch into Shadow’s paws, “You can track him with this right? Then do it.”

There was no leeway in the tod’s stance, “Of course Captain, I’ll see what I can do.”

“Good, and when we find who took him,” violet energy whisked to life as it coated his paws, “there’ll be hell to pay…”

_____

After casting a Location Spell, the group had been following the floating pouch for some time. Wilde and Hopps had donned their staffs and both steel their expressions for whatever they might find or run into. Shadow, however, could see the white-knuckle grip Wilde had as his paw tramble ever so slightly. It worried the young wolf.

“Captain, are-”

“Are we close?” His commanding tone sucked any questions the canine might’ve asked and instead listened to his orders.

“I believe so, the item glows brighter as we get closer and when we do the spell will shut off,” their journey had led them through the forest near Zootopia and the further they traveled the brighter the pouched glowed.

The pouch hadn’t completely fallen out of the air when the silence was filled with anguished screams and howls like no other. The tod tensed, “Finnick…”

“FINNICK!” Wilde shouted at the top of his lungs as he sprinted through the ever expanding treeline. The others started falling behind as the fox started becoming too much to keep up with. As bushes and branches whizzed by Shadow finally managed to catch up Wilde just as they came to a clearing, the red wolf grabbing the captain by the collar and pulling him back, “Hey! What-“ The fox didn't much out before a paw clamped his muzzle shut.

“ _Shut it!_ ” Shadow hissed, “I don't think they saw us,” the canine peered over his shoulder- and passed the tree and bushes they were hiding behind- to see what was happening. What he saw made his anger grow.

Finnick Deserttail was in agony, screaming with his now raw voice, as he was feet above the ground in the center of a blackened magic circle. Many cloaked mammals made a half circle around him, chanting, while Michael Clanweaver stood at the middle, arms forming an X. The fennec began to glow a beige as it seemed like a light was emerging itself from his chest.

His screams, however hoarse, increased tenfold.

The end of Nick’s staff grew bright as Shadow was quicker, snatching his arm before he could raise it, “You attack now and you have no clue what that will do to Finnick. The ritual’s almost done we have to wait until then.

The vulpine finally managed to slip out of the wolf’s other paw, “If Clanweaver finishes then-“

“I know Nick… I know, but we don’t have any other choice.” And so they waited, but it wasn't long. Apparently their timing was impeccable as they seemed to arrive just at the end of the ritual. As the light fully entered from Finnick he fell to the ground and the scarred lion finished the chant:

“ _Unius potestate res aliena fit!_ ” The lion reached onto his being to grab a small empty vial and uncapped it. The ball of light floated it's way over to him and entered the bottle, Michael briskly capping it before placing it back on the custom leather belt across his chest that could house it, “Finally… and you can come out now, I know you’re there!”

The five mammals moved out of the bushes and into plain view, “Ah, there you are! Come looking for your small friend?” He teased, his voice ever gravely, “And it seems that the two of you have your magic again, what a curious predicament, but as you can see…” an intricate beige circle blessed the underside of his paw as dust swirled around it, “you’re too late. This could’ve been the two of you, but now it seems that it’ll be more fun ripping you apart now that you have come back to your senses- and here,” they in promptly punted Finnick into the air as he skidded and bounced across the ground over to the group, “Do with that as you will, i have no need for it anymore.”

The broke the straw of the proverbial camel’s back.

Wilde’s eyes grew a violent shade of violet as the gem on top of his staff burned brightly, " _ **NO!**_ " Teeth bared and hackles raised, Nick thrusted is staff at the lion sending a concussive beam of raw energy towards its target. The fox roared like never before as Shadow shielded everyone else from the attack.

But Clanweaver only smiled. With a quick wave of his paw, a huge dust cloud broke his and Nick’s line of sight, which was enough for Nick, in his blind rage, to be just slow enough when reacting. The beam tore through the could like nothing, but equally hit nothing as it passed by.

Shadow managed to remove the staff from the fox’s grip, halting the attack, “What the hell were you thinking?! With how close that was that could've killed us!” Wilde, still fueled with rage, as ready to draw his sword and skewer the wolf… only for everything to drain from his being and have him collapse to his knees. Too much energy all at once, the captain had expended all that he had and then some. He almost burned himself out. But even in his weakened state his anger switched to pain as he saw Finnick’s seemingly lifeless body.

“F… Fin?...” Tears rolled down his cheeks as he attempted to crawl over, “No... no… no, no, no this… this _can't…_ ” he shut up to pleadingly look at Shadow, “is… is he…?”

The red wolf crouched down and placed two digits against the fennec’s extremely small neck… and let out a sigh, “It’s weak, very weak, but he has a pulse.” Nick could’ve collapsed right there if he still wasn't racked with worry, “He won’t make it unless we get him back to the ship right now.”

“Way ahead of you,” Judy said as she rolled her shoulders, “have some boots back on the ship- Sly, Lucky, mind helping me?” She asked, getting two nods as they assisted her in the transport spell.

_____

“...Ugh…” The fennec’s eyes slowly fluttered open as he forced himself up. Deserttail didn't even have anytime to react as a large mass tackled all the air out of him.

“F-Finnick, you’re okay!” Croaked Wilde as he tightened his hold on Finnick, “I-I was so worried… I thought… I t-thought you weren’t-“

‘Woah, hold up there, what the hell you talkin’ about?” Finnick managed to get out as Wilde loosened his grip on him, “What happened?”

“You… you don't remember?”

“I mean… my head’s a little fuzzy right now…” The small vulpine rubbed his temples as Shadow stepped forward- they were the Captain's Quarters.

“Michael had attacked you. We were lucky enough to show up at the right time though, you were immensely weak when we found you an if had shown up maybe just a few minutes later you probably wouldn’t have made it.”

“Well… guess I’m glad you guys found my ass, thanks,” The one the Finnick was always appreciative of was someone saving his life since, well… he got to live and all.

But something didn't seem right. Everyone around him seemed lost… weary, “What, what is it?” He turned to Nick, who was properly looking him in the eyes and who looked equally as disturbed as everyone else, “What is it? What’s wrong?” Finnick felt something prod his shoulder and it was Lucky… holding a hand mirror. Finnick’s stomach dropped.

He snatched the mirror from her paws and brought it up to show his face, noting out of the ordinary except- “My eyes… What happened to me eyes?!” Instead of the rust he was used to seeing what stared back at him were colorless irises of smoke. He could see perfectly fine, but the color his eyes once held was gone.

“How… How is that…” Then he clutched his chest… and he felt empty, “Something doesn’t feel right.”

“Fin-“

“My pouch, where’s my pouch?”

Shadow pulled it out of his coat and held it, “Finnick I really don't think-“

“Who gives a fuck what you think, _give me my pouch!_ ” The canine obliged, fearing what was going to happen next.

Finnick uncapped it and flicked his paw open in front of it… nothing happens. He tried again, the same result. He did this over and over again getting the exact same thing happening, nothing.

“Why… Why can't I move my sand?!” His eyes wide as he increasingly grew more frantic.

“Finnick,” the fennec’s head snapped up towards Shadow, pleading confusion written across it, “you… you were taken by Michael. We didn't know until we went to check up on you at the pub and all we found was your pouch. We used it to track you down and…”

“No…”

“CLanweaver was already nearing the end of his ritual for you.”

“No… don't…”

“I had no idea of the repercussions if we tried to stop it before it finished and I was worried it would kill you if we tried, so… we let him finish.”

At this point the fox was shaking his head, “Don't… Don't you dare say-“

“He took your magic Finnick, I’m sorry… you’re powerless.”

Never had Shadow heard, in all of his life, a room go from silence to a roar of agony in a matter of seconds. It tore through everyone like a hot blade.

Since the beginning of this journey… they had finally lost.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finnick, I'm sorry! I know how much your magic means to you! But yeah... had to take it. (*Gasp* Is that what the title was referring too? Yes... yes it was.)
> 
> But what did you guys think? Tell me in the comments below because I love reading them and it's always so cool for the ones here because people ask _a lot_ of questions... but that's why I love it so keep them coming!
> 
> [Shameless plug: If any of you haven't it would be really cool if you checked out my other stories _Launchpad: The Mask we Wear_ and _Ducktales: The Reflections we Face_ \- if you couldn't tell they're Ducktales and the latter story is the sequel to the first so if you haven't read the first one I would highly recommend it! (Plugging fictions in a fiction... I really am a Writer ;) )]
> 
> Until next time, see you all October 13th! ~~Why couldn't it have been the 14th... I live for Friday the 13th :'(~~


	14. Author's Notes (NOT A CHAPTER)

I am so sorry for not uploading the latest chapter for this story! I have had a lot of things going on, college and such, while also trying to write my other story, _Ducktales: The Reflections we Face_ , so I'm gonna have to put this story on Hiatus until I have the time to work on both. (Sorry for not telling you guys sooner! D:)

Once I hit winter break though I should be able to get back to this, so do not worry I am not abandoning this! I finish what I start! You have my word ;)


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